My New Mom Is A Vampire
by tanis ann
Summary: Alice decided it would be a fun idea to sign the family up for Trading Spouses. What happens when Esme is sent Atlanta and a new mother, Linda Walling, comes to live in Forks with the Cullens? How will the week long switch turn out? I don't own anything
1. Chapter 1: Preparing For The Switch

**A/N: Okay, so this is my first story, so I hope you enjoy. I got this idea when I was watching Trading Spouses one night and I thought 'wouldn't it be cool if our favourite story family decided to participate?' And so the idea was born. **

**This story is NOT All Human. Carlisle and Esme are the 'parents' and the 'children' are playing the ages they are in Twilight (Rosalie, Emmett and Jasper are in grade 12 (18 yrs), Edward, Bella and Alice are in grade 11(17yrs)). **

**There is no Renesmee.**

**Okay, well I hope you enjoy this story.**

**Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns everything Twilight related. I'm not sure who owns Trading Spouses, but it sure as hell isn't me. **

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**Chapter One: Preparing For The Switch**

The silence outside the large, white house was extremely conflicting with the complete chaos that raged inside. The eight members of the Cullen family were frantically preparing for the coming switch. A switch that could possibly blow their cover.

Alice Cullen decided it could be fun if they signed up for the T.V. show _Trading Spouses: Meet Your New Mommy_. She argued it would be a fun change from their normal life, the planned out life they all lived everyday. They had been living as 'humans' for years, and she was positive - as she had the ability to know such things - that they would be able to improvise the charade for one week. Sure, they would have to cough up the meals the new mom cooked, but it would still be fun.

However, she had decided to tell everyone about the coming switch three days prior. And that was when the chaos began.

The whole family was running around making sure all traces of their true nature was hidden. They were buying food, even preparing a few meals to stand as leftovers in the fridge, and adding beds to more rooms. One for the new mother, and one for each of the kids. What would it look like if the couples slept in the same rooms? They were also hiding many of their more expensive cars, how much luxury could one family have?

On the night before the switch, Carlisle gave the family a bit of instruction for the coming week. They gathered around the dining room table, a table that was about to be used for its designed purpose for the first time.

"Alright everyone, Alice has assured us many times that this will all turn out fine, but just to be sure, here are a few things I need you to remember. First, you six are not couples. You are brothers and sisters. Try to express no more than brotherly or sisterly love for each other. If you feel the need to demonstrate your feelings for one another please do not do it in front of the cameras and especially not in front of the new mom. Second, you'll have to eat this week. I know it's difficult, but please try to take portions a person your size would. I'm sorry Emmett." He said as he gave an apologetic glance to the extremely large vampire sitting across from him. "Thirdly, for the next week this house is no longer a safe haven. Everything you say and do will be seen by the nation. Move at human speed, talk at human speed, do everything as a human would. Try to be as 'normal' as you can. Edward, do not answer thoughts, Jasper, leave the emotions alone and Alice, keep the future to yourself. I think that's all I can say. Oh, and please be polite to the new mother."

The six vampires nodded. Everyone, except Alice, was skeptical of how the next week would play out. There were so many things that could go wrong in the course of the week. Their home was usually the place where they could be themselves, it would be difficult to break the habit of not pretending. However, as dubious as everyone was, they took comfort in Alice's confidence.

As the sun began to make it first appearance, the tension in the house rose. Esme was gathering her things in a neat and uniform pile, awaiting the yellow taxi that would come and take her to the airport in Seattle. She would be heading to a Atlanta, Georgia that morning. Joining a new family. She couldn't deny the excitement building up in her. She wanted to get to know this new family, help them in any way possible, maybe redecorate their house. But she was still worried. It would be harder for her, spending a week in the sunny south, but Alice had assured her that the weather for the next week would be uncharacteristically rainy and cloudy, and if the sun was to make an unexpected appearance, Alice had prepared her with a wardrobe designed to cover most of her body. She would also be alone, the others would have each other, she would have no one, she'd have to sneak out at night and hunt whatever she found, and she'd have only herself to rely on. It was mildly frightening.

The yellow vehicle pulled up in front of the house and gave two short honks, signaling it had arrived. The family gathered and each gave Esme a quick hug and wished her luck for the week. The last was Carlisle, he stepped forward and gave her a tight hug, a quick peck on the lips and told her he'd be awaiting her return.

She gathered her things, waved goodbye and was soon on her way to the Seattle airport, to be flown to Atlanta.

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Linda Walling was preparing to depart from her home in Atlanta, to a stranger's house in the small town of Forks, Washington, she had never even heard of Forks before this. She was nervous. Nervous to be away from her family, nervous to be living in another person's house, nervous that the new mother might be a complete psycho. She really didn't know why she was doing this, sure, the family would get $50,000 dollars, but still, she had no idea what she was getting herself into. She was told very little about the family she was soon going to become a part of. She knew they had six kids, and she knew they lived in Forks. That was about it. Other than those small facts, she was just stumbling around in the dark.

She knew her husband, Jim, wasn't too thrilled about the switch either. He didn't want some high maintenance woman coming into his home, complaining and changing everything about the way they lived.

They lived in one of the lower income neighborhoods of Atlanta. They had enough to live on, and that was good enough for them. Jim worked as a warehouse worker for a local paper company and made just enough for them afford a good house and all the necessities. Their family couldn't afford luxuries. The family had one car which they all shared. Jim usually took it to work.

Their two children, Sandra and Andy, attended the local high school. Sandra was fifteen and in grade ten, while Andy was seventeen and in grade twelve. They, like their father, were not especially excited about the switch. They were not particularly close with their mother, but they didn't really want a stranger posing as her, giving them orders they did not want to take. They didn't want this mother to bring some foreign way of life into their home that she liked better than theirs.

Linda began to gather her things at the front door, anxiously awaiting the car that would take her to the airport. The rest of her family waited with her.

"Are you excited?" Asked Sandra. She was comfortably seated on the old couch, her relaxed pose hiding just how nervous she was. She had never been without her mother for long. She didn't know how things would happen for the next week, how the family would function without the rock that held them all together.

Linda turned to look at her daughter. She wasn't sure how to answer the question and not give away just how fearful she was.

"Yeah, I guess I am. I'm excited to meet this new family, they have _six_ kids! I'm not sure how to handle them all."

"_Six_!?" Jim repeated astonished.

"And they're all teenagers." Linda replied.

The Walling family was positive the house must be complete mayhem all the time. This family had only two teenagers and it had functioning issues. There was a constant squabble for the bathroom and the bickering never seemed to end. The fighting in that house must be three times as bad.

Linda gulped as she contemplated the coming challenge. How was she ever going to contain six teenagers?

"I'm sure you'll do just fine, ma. You manage Andy just fine and I'm sure he's worse than all of them put together." Sandra said in a joking tone.

"Shut up!" Andy shouted as he punched his sister's shoulder.

Linda smiled as the bickering between her two children started up again. She would miss it over the next week. It was oddly comforting to her, when it wasn't annoying the living daylights out of her.

As she was committing the sound to her memory, she heard a honking outside the window.

"That's my ride." She said as she began to pick up her things. He two children stopped fighting long enough to hug her goodbye and her husband carried half her bags out to the cab.

She turned to Jim when the last bag was put in it's place and gave him a hug and a quick kiss goodbye.

"Have fun, I'll be waiting here at home for you." Jim told her as he waved goodbye.

Then Linda was quickly being taken to the airport about to be flown off to a completely unknown town to a stranger's house. She could only hope it wouldn't be too horrific.

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**Well, that's chapter one for you. I hope you enjoyed it. **

**I know it's a short chapter, but this was just the preparations for the actual switch and I needed to introduce my other family, the Wallings. They should get longer when we get into the actual story.**

**I'd love to hear what you think of this, so drop me a line by clicking on that 'Review This Story' button!**

**Until next time,**

**- tanis ann **


	2. Chapter 2: Day One: Part One

**A/N: Holy cow, friends! 15 reviews and I lost count of how many alerts/favourites I got! I actually cannot express how happy you all made me! It literally brought tears to my eyes!**

**I wanted to get this out sooner, but then I was half finished the chapter and I had to go to skating, then I was at my dad's house that night and had to watch Supernatural, The Bourne: Ultimatum and The Office, so I never got another chance to work on it . . . Then I had to take the hour and a half long bus ride home. So, sorry. :)**

**Oh, and just to clear up one question I received: "Is it set in the future?" Yes, yes it is. And they're back in Forks. Sorry I didn't say that sooner.**

**Now, without further adieu, Chapter Two! (Haha that rhymes)**

****NOTE****

**When I have whole sections of dialogue in **_**italics**_** it means they're doing that confessional thing. *****

**Disclaimer: Twilight is not mine, nor is Trading Spouses. PLEASE DON'T SUE!**

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**Chapter Two: Day One - The Cullen's house**

Linda Walling stumbled off the plane, disoriented and rather tired. She had not gotten a lot of sleep the previous night, she was much too nervous and stressed about the coming week to allow for sleep, and just sat five and a half hours on a plane from Atlanta to Seattle.

She had no idea what she was to do now. She knew she was supposed to be looking for her new 'husband', but no one told her what he looked like. The man she was looking for could be anyone . . .

Doing the only thing she could in this situation, she went and got her luggage from the carousel. It was a small pile. Just two medium sized suitcases, and the bag she carried on. With that, she waited. And waited. And waited.

While she was waiting, she was scanning the crowd, looking for someone who looked like they had six teenage children. Maybe a balding head from the stress, pot belly, he probably wasn't very clean cut, either, she thought. She saw a few men who fit her own personal catalogue, but they were all leaving with beautiful women half their age. As she was looking, a smooth voice, coming from behind her, startled her.

"Excuse me?" the voice asked.

She quickly turned around, only to stop dead in the action. The voice belonged to the most handsome man she had ever seen. A full head of smooth, blonde hair, very fit looking, and dressed in clothes that probably cost three times Jim's paycheck.

"Yes?" She answered it a slightly shaky, startled voice.

He smiled, and her breath caught in her throat. This man was gorgeous!

"I think you're my new wife for the week. I'm Carlisle." He replied, holding his hand out to her.

For a split second, she couldn't think. Then her brain picked up the slack. This stunning man, who looked to be no older than thirty, was the father of six teenagers! He looked nothing like the men she had suspected to be her new husband, he should be the one leaving with all those beautiful 20 year old women, not those disgusting, pot bellied men.

"Linda," she said taking his outstretched hand.

"It's nice to meet you, Linda. Did you have a pleasant flight?" Carlisle asked, taking her bags.

"Umm . . . yes, I did. It was nice." She stuttered, not able to speak smoothly. She was too busy thinking of how ravishing this man was, and how he was very effortlessly carrying both of her bags for her. He must work out, she thought.

She followed him as he glided through the airport. She was rather amazed with the way he carried himself.

It was not long before he stopped in front of the one of the most expensive looking cars Linda had ever laid eyes on. It was sleek, black and very modern looking. A mercedes, she noted as she saw the familiar symbol mounted on the front of the car. He packed her bags for her and very courteously opened her door for her. The interior was nicer than she expected.

_Maybe he's a plastic surgeon, _she thought. That would explain why he was so beautiful . . . But he lived in Forks, Washington, if he was a plastic surgeon shouldn't he live in L.A. or something?

"What do you do for a living?" She asked. She was curious to know how he could be so successful in a town this small.

"I'm a surgeon." He replied. "At the local hospital."

Well that explained it. Linda knew just how much hospital bills could cost, Jim had heart problems and needed frequent visits, Carlisle must make a fortune off of all the people in this town who had no other choice than to go to the only hospital. He probably charged them way, way too much.

"What do you do?" He asked her.

Carlisle could tell how uncomfortable she was. He could see how extremely tense she was, and had been since he had introduced himself. He wanted to ease the tension, but he wasn't Jasper. How handy a gift like that could be at times . . . So, he did the only thing he knew how, He treated her for shock.

"Uh, I mostly stay at home. But I work two days a week at a bakery." she replied. She was still a little surprised at the appearance of this man to form a real response. And she was even more nervous about meeting the family. Would they all be as beautiful as Carlisle?

For the rest of the ride home, they made idle chit chat. Carlisle was trying to ease the tension and Linda was trying to extract secrets from Carlisle about how he could make so much money in such a small town.

After longer than it should have been (Carlisle had to drive at the legal limit to avoid frightening Linda more than she already was), they arrived at the large, white house the Cullens called home.

Linda stood in the large, meadow-like lawn completely stunned. The house was enormous! Three stories tall and probably about eight times bigger than her own home. It was perfectly symmetrical and her mind couldn't even calculate how much it cost.

Carlisle, while gathering her things from the trunk, fiercely hoped that this wasn't all too overwhelming for her.

He could hear the six other vampires scrambling around the in the house, trying to prepare for their new arrival. They were trying their best to appear normal for this new mother. He wondered if his family _could _appear normal.

The two walked up the steps, eight very intimidating steps, according to Linda, and stopped in front of the door.

Carlisle took a deep breath. He really didn't know what was going to happen after he opened that door. He could hear the silence inside the house. And that bothered him a little. His family was never quiet.

Not wanting to seem overly hesitant, he opened the door to reveal six teenage vampires sitting quietly on the modern, white sofa.

"Linda, this is my family." He said, gesturing to the gathering in the living room. "Alice, Jasper, Emmett, Rosalie, Edward and Bella."

Linda couldn't find it in herself to respond. The entire family was as beautiful as their father. She couldn't help but stare as she examined the six children sitting politely on the sofa: Alice, the first of the children Carlisle named was very tiny, probably no taller than five feet. Jasper was very tall and thin, but still muscular, Emmett was massive, Rosalie was striking, but giving Linda some sort of glare, Edward looked somewhat amused and Bella just looked friendly.

As Linda was studying the Cullens, Alice was scrutinizing Linda. Linda was a plump woman, not fat nor skinny. Her sandy blonde hair was cut in some sort of grown-in mullet, her hair just reaching her shoulders. She dressed in a pale blue blouse that was slightly faded and had a few light brown stains on it. Her pants were beige slacks, they were very out dated and too short. On her feet were a pair of old running shoes, they were very dirty and had a few holes. While Rosalie thought she looked a little bit dirty and disgusting, Alice saw a blank canvas . . .

"Hello, everyone." Linda quietly replied, still very intimidated.

"Welcome to our home!" Emmett practically shouted as he started to advance on Linda.

Linda stopped thinking as the massive boy named Emmett started to walk towards her. Her first instinct was to turn and run. Nothing good could come out of someone that big approaching you. But she didn't have enough time to move before she was engulfed in the tightest hug she had ever had. She was starting to loose feeling in her finger tips when Rosalie hissed "Emmett!" and grabbed him by the ear, pulling him down on the couch before smacking the back of his head.

"I apologize for my stupid brother." Rosalie said in a voice that was not entirely friendly.

"Umm, no problem."

It was then that Alice decided to make her grande introduction. She ran up to Linda, at a speed that was not entirely human, and also engulfed her in a hug. This hug was much less overwhelming.

"Linda! I'm so excited to meet you! We are going to do so many fun things together! Like go shopping and get our hair done and our nails done and this week is just going to be so great!"

"Oh, that does sound like fun . . ."

Linda was not particularity fond of shopping, actually she hated it. There was a reason she was wearing the same pants she bought in 1987. She hadn't been shopping for herself in almost a decade.

"Alice, maybe our guest does not want to go shopping." Edward said. He knew just how much Linda did not want to go, and he knew just how much hell Alice had put Bella through. But now that Bella could put up a little resistance, Alice had been looking for a new subject. If she was to take Linda to the mall, it would not be pretty.

"Oh Edward, butt out! I'm sure Miss Linda would love to come with me! Right Linda?" Alice said enthusiastically.

Linda nodded, not wanting to disappoint the little girl still clinging onto her.

"And I'm sure she wouldn't." Edward mumbled. Too quiet for Linda to hear. Alice just stuck out her tongue.

After more polite introductions from Edward and Bella, and no introduction from Rosalie, the family soon settled into a more relaxed environment. Linda began to unpack her things in a room bigger than her living room and kitchen put together. The furnishings probably cost more than the down payment she put on her house. There was a huge king-sized bed in the middle of the room that was surrounded by various pieces of furniture that looked to be antiques. The walls were painted a light brown that complimented the rest of the room nicely. The walk-in closet was bigger than her room at home, her clothes only filled about one sixteenth of the space available.

She sauntered downstairs, fatigued and hungry. It was then that she wondered if she had to be the one to cook dinner.

In the living room, Edward and Bella were watching T.V., Jasper and Emmett were playing some sort of strange game involving six decks of cards, a few pieces of Monopoly, and three chess boards. Linda didn't dare ask what they were doing. And Alice and Rosalie were nowhere to be seen at the moment.

"Uh, what do you usually do for dinner?"

Edward and Bella looked at Linda for a moment before looking at each other, then at Emmett and Jasper.

"Esme usually cooks." Emmett suddenly blurted out, loud enough to make Linda jump.

"Okay, I guess I should cook then." Linda said quietly, before turning and entering the kitchen. Which was enormous and very expensive looking.

Not long after, Linda had set out an elaborate dinner for the family of seven. Cooking extra for Emmett. Very proud of herself, she called them for dinner. Carefully watching their faces as they saw all the food she had prepared.

"This looks great." Carlisle was the first to speak. Linda could not detect the faint trace of disgust in his tone. Nor did she see the expressions on the faces of the kids that said 'this looks the opposite of great'.

Everyone was very hesitant to start. No one was looking forward to what would have to happen after the meal.

"Well, dig in guys!" Linda said while she took a large scoop of the mashed potatoes she had made from scratch. She was pretty sure they would enjoy this dinner, she cut no corners making it!

"Yes. I love food!" Emmett said in a bad-actor tone. He took a very large helping of everything on the table.

Alice, Rosalie and Bella were the lucky ones. Their small figures allowed them to take small helpings, less food they would have to pretend to enjoy. Emmett, Edward and Jasper on the other hand, had to take several portions of everything. They were growing boys after all. Carlisle ate a gentlemanly portion.

It was a rather entertaining dinner, according to the girls. Emmett, being the good sport he is, even took thirds. He would gag every time Linda looked away, and hid as much of his dinner in his pockets as he could.

It was nearing the end of dinner, while Emmett was thanking the good Lord, that Linda noticed there was still about one serving of each of the dishes left.

"Oh, Emmett, you wouldn't mind finishing that would you? Then we won't have any leftovers."

Emmett almost started to cry. The look on his face was so heartbroken, the other six vampires almost lost their perfect calm. Alice and Bella had let a few giggles escape and Jasper and Edward's shoulders where shaking with silent laughter.

"No, hand it over." Emmett replied, defeated.

The others started clearing the table as Emmett choked down the first of many large dinners.


	3. Chapter 3: Day One: Part Two

**A/N: Wow, again you guys! All these reviews I get! They warm the cockles of my heart! (Especially that one about making your husband laugh. That boosted my ego quite a bit!)**

**I'm sorry I don't give all you reviewers a special reply of thanks, but I don't actually know how . . . haha. If someone could let me know, that'd be nice.**

**Now, I won't be getting updates out as fast as I am come this Monday, I am back to school after a long and relaxing semester break. I'll try to get them out as much as I can. (Plus, my little sister is a bit of a computer hog . . .)**

**Okay, I need to stop talking now.**

**Disclaimer: Nothing is mine. Just the Walling family.**

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**Chapter Three: Day One - The Walling's House**

Esme, unlike Linda, gracefully exited the plane. She effortlessly flowed through the Atlanta airport, weaving through the many people gathered, to obtain the many suitcases Alice had packed for her. They were all very large and all matched.

When she had all eight of her bags piled in a neat pyramid, she, like Linda, waited to be found. She passed the time thinking about her family. Wondering how they were doing. Was the new mother a nice person? Was she treating them well? Were they treating her well?

A tall, lanky man walking towards her pulled her attention away from her many thoughts. The man had scraggly brown hair that needed a good cut, a beige, collard shirt that was tucked into a pair of old jeans, which ended about two inches above his old, brown loafers. And on his face, was a nice pair of large, grandfather glasses.

"Hello?" he said in a timid voice. Jim was unsure of what he was supposed to do. He knew he was looking for a woman, but that didn't really narrow it down too much.

Jim was not an outgoing person. He preferred to have quiet nights at home building model planes than go out and meet people. And this task of finding a woman he knew nothing about was especially hard. He used logic to solve the problem he was presented with, that way he would have to talk to less people.

He knew that if he was not informed of the woman's appearance, she would not be informed of his. All he had to do was look for the person who looked lost.

To find this woman, who would look lost, he decided the most efficient way would be to stand on one of the benches. He searched the crowd, while receiving many strange looks, and found a woman with brown hair, standing beside a massive pile of luggage, looking like she didn't know what to do next. He decided to start there.

Upon hearing the quiet greeting, Esme smiled and answered.

"Yes?"

"I think you may be my new wife." Jim said just as quiet and unsure as before. He really hoped she was the one he was looking for, or it would sound like he used a really terrible pick up line. She was a beautiful woman, maybe she was used to such things.

Esme could see that the poor man standing in front of her was terribly stressed. She was already starting to like this man, and didn't want to see him worry that he may have offended her.

"I'm Esme, pleased to meet you." She smiled, hoping to relax him a little bit.

Jim exhaled, happy that he was not mistaken.

"Jim," he said while shaking Esme's hand.

"Do you . . . need some help with that?" He asked. This woman did not travel light.

Esme smiled. She could easily carry all the bags, but what would it look like if she balanced them all on one palm?

"That would be nice, thank you."

Jim picked up five of the eight bags. Stacking some of the smaller ones on the larger ones. They were heavier than he expected. Whoever packed these really put in as much as the bags could hold. The zippers were practically bursting.

It was a long walk to the car. Jim hadn't been able to get a parking spot very close, actually he was parked in row Y, and he could hardly feel his arms. But he trudged on, not wanting a lady to have to carry the majority.

The walk to the car was silent. Esme just followed Jim as he very gentlemanly carried most of the bags. It was about seven minutes of walking later that they reached an old, rusted, navy blue van. It looked like it was at least fifteen years old, and was missing large patches of paint. There was a big dent in the bumper.

Jim loaded the eight bags into the back of the van and climbed in the drivers seat. Esme followed suit. The interior of the van was tan and stained. A musty smell clung to the upholstery and there were large holes scattered around the seats, a few even had rusty springs sticking out.

"What do you do for a living?" Esme asked to break the silence.

"I work in a warehouse. For a paper company. How about you, what do you do?"

"I stay at home most of the time. But I really enjoy architecture and interior design, I like to have a few household projects going to keep me busy."

"Really, wow. That sounds very interesting."

"What do you do in your free time? I'm sure you don't just sit around wishing you were moving crates of paper."

Jim gave a small laugh at that, which was rare for him and answered.

"I like to build model planes. I . . . I'd like own my own model shop. I'd call it . . . _Planes and Things_. Or something like that."

"That's nice."

The rest of the ride passed in relative silence. Esme could tell Jim was done sharing for the time being.

The van pulled into the driveway of a small, blue house. It looked like it was fairly old, most likely build some time around 1960. The door was white, with a few paint chips missing and the railing lining the stairs was leaning to the side at an unhealthy angle. This house was mess, to say the least, and Esme couldn't be more excited.

Jim stepped out of the car and, for the first time since Esme had met him, raised his voice past a whisper.

"Andy! Sandra!" He shouted so loud it made Esme jump, "come help with the bags!"

The old white door opened to reveal two children. The first, a boy about seventeen, was rather tall, like his father, but more muscular. He wore a fitted, grey hoodie and jeans that appeared to be about as low as his knees. His dark brown hair was falling in his eyes. The second was a girl, about fifteen years old. Her hair, which was a mix between her father's brown hair and her mother's sandy blonde, was tied back into a ponytail. She was wearing a pair of thick rimmed, dark brown glasses, a blue sweater and a pair of jeans.

The pair apathetically walked down the three stairs leading to the house, down the driveway to the back of the car. They wordlessly grabbed two bags each and returned to the house.

Esme thought she heard Jim quietly mumble "lazy kids," before grabbing the remaining four bags himself.

Jim lead Esme down the short, main hallway to a small room with one twin bed. The room was very cluttered, the bed and the small dresser took up about three quarters of the total space. The bed and the walls were covered in a generic flower print from 1975.

"This is your room, make yourself at home. I'll . . . leave you to unpack." Jim muttered before quietly exiting the room.

Esme smiled to herself as she was unpacking. There was so much she could do with this house! Even just a coat of paint and new bed sheets would do wonders for this room.

This would be a very exciting week, if she had anything to do with it.

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**A/N: Alrighty, well that's you're first look into the Walling family. **

**I hope you enjoyed it.**

**Drop me a line and tell me if you did or not. Give me some constructive criticism, or just tell me what you think.**

**Your reviews really mean a lot to me.**


	4. Chapter 4: Day Two: Part One

**A/N: Okay so here's the next chapter. We're back at the Cullen's house again. Sorry this update is a little late, but I was shredding the mountain yesterday. **

**Thanks again to all the reviewers!**

**Remember, dialogue in _italics_ means their talking to just the camera.**

**Disclaimer: Nothing is mine.**

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Linda awoke in the middle of the night to a sound she couldn't quite name, though it was familiar. It was a forced sound, not something anyone would make purposefully. Disoriented from waking up in the middle of sleep, she grabbed a sweater and started wandering down the large, unfamiliar hallways.

Following the sound as best she could, she found herself standing in front of the second story bathroom. She pressed her ear to the door, hoping to hear the sound more closely. When the noise sounded again, she was able to pinpoint it. Someone was throwing up. Her motherly instincts immediately kicked in. She knocked on the door.

"Hello? Can I come in?"

She thought she heard a low curse, but she couldn't be sure.

"Uh, yeah, It's unlocked."

Linda slowly opened the door, and peeked through the crack. Emmett was hunched over the toilet, looking quite fed up and beaten.

"Oh, dear, Emmett! Are you alright!? Are you sick?"

Emmett groaned, partly because he felt absolutely horrid regurgitating all food he ate, and partly because if anyone was ever slouched over a toilet in the fashion he was, they were never alright. There was no need to ask.

"Uh, yeah, I think I have the . . . flu. It's been going around the school." He said before choking up another round of food.

Linda felt helpless, like she always did when anyone she was caring for was sick. What could you do but stand there and watch them suffer?

"I think I have some Pepto Bismol in my bag, I'll be right back." She started to turn when Emmett shouted.

"NO! No, we, uh, don't use medicine in this family. It's, uh, taboo?" Emmett thought his excuse was completely idiotic, but it was all he could think of under the pressure.

"Oh, okay then. Well, call me if you need anything . . ." She quietly exited the bathroom. And went back to bed.

It was approximately one hour later when the familiar sound woke her again. She sleepily walked back to the bathroom, expecting Emmett to be up again. Poor boy.

"Emmett, are you sure you–" She was about to ask him if he was sure he didn't want the Pepto, but instead of Emmett crouched over the toilet bowl, it was Jasper.

"Oh, Jasper! Do you have the flu, too"

"Um, yes, I do. I think . . . I should go back to bed. Goodnight, Linda." Jasper stiffly rose and stalked out of the room.

Linda watched him stiffen as he passed, and then went back to bed.

Linda was abruptly awoken several more times that night, all due to the same thing. She saw more than half of the family throwing up in the toilet, they all claimed it was the flu running it's course through their family, but she doubted that. They all looked fine before dinner, what of she gave them food poisoning?

"_The whole family seems to be getting sick, and they won't let me do anything! First Emmett, then Jasper, Edward, Bella and Alice! They're all catching the flu, but they keep telling me using medicine is a taboo, or something in their family. What kind of family taboos medicine? I feel so helpless, you know? Maybe I'll make then all chicken soup. Sick people like chicken soup."_

Linda was up at about seven o'clock. She didn't sleep well that night, she was worrying about her new family, they were all sick, except for Rosalie and Carlisle. She went out early, before anyone was awake, got some ginger ale, and started making homemade chicken soup. Her children always liked it when she did that for them when they were sick. She filled five glasses with ginger ale, and five bowls with soup.

She went to Emmett's room first.

"Emmett, honey," she whispered, not wanting to wake him if he was asleep. "Are you awake?"

He grunted in response. He really did not want to deal with whatever torture she had lined up for him today. What was going to do next? Shove three stacks of pancakes down his throat?

"I made you some chicken soup to help you feel better." She brought in a tray of food and placed it on his lap.

"Uh, you know what, I feel so great now. You really didn't need to go through so much trouble for me. Give it to Edward. He was _really_ sick last night. He'll really appreciate it." Emmett was desperate to get out of eating the soup. He really didn't want to eat any more than he absolutely had to.

"Nonsense, Emmett! You just stay in bed today and work on felling better."

With that, she left the room to deliver more 'feel good soup'.

Emmett knew he should have choked his dinner back up outside, but no, Edward said they should do it in here. That Linda would never even know. But now he had the 'flu', and not only did he have to stay in his room all night pretending to sleep, but now he had to do it all day, too! He was going to beat Edward up as soon as he was 'better'.

Linda was very pleased with herself. Not only had she made all the sick children 'get better meals', but she had prepared breakfast for those who weren't sick, and even made Carlisle's lunch.

It was early Sunday afternoon, Carlisle had left to the hospital, Linda and Rosalie were watching T.V., when Rosalie stood up and muttered.

"I'm going to work on my car."

"_I was really amazed to find out that Rosalie builds cars. She really doesn't look like the kind of girl who would like mechanics. I really felt like Rosalie was putting up a lot of walls. I want to get to know her better. I feel like we could be really good friends."_

Linda followed Rosalie out to the massive garage. It was bigger than a normal garage, probably specially built, and was filled with several expensive looking cars. There was a very large Jeep, a silver Volvo and a red BMW, with a pair of legs sticking out the bottom (the rest of the cars were hidden in forest, they were much too ostentatious).

"So, Rosalie, when did you find out you liked mechanics?"

"I don't know. A while ago."

Rosalie really didn't want Linda here. Working on her car was something she preferred to do alone, or with Emmett. She didn't want Linda here asking nosy questions about her life. She'd just have to come up with a bunch of lies.

"How do you like living with so many kids in the house?"

"It's fine. Edward is kind of annoying to have around, though."

"Why is that?"

Rosalie gave a frustrated sigh. Why was this woman so interested in her life? Why couldn't she get the hint that she'd rather be alone?

"He . . . hears too much."

"Hmm. How about the others? Emmett seems like a nice guy."

"Yeah. Emmett is great."

The afternoon continued like that for quite a while. Linda kept asking questions and Rosalie kept lying.

"_I really feel like I've gotten much closer to Rosalie. We bonded a little bit today. It was a little hard to get answers out of her, but I think by the end she really started to enjoy out little chat."_

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Carlisle came home to a relatively quiet house. Rosalie was sprawled across one of the reclining chairs, the other five kids were nowhere to be seen and the smell of fresh cooked food filled the house. It made him gag.

"Where are the rest of them?" He asked Rose, quiet and fast enough that Linda wouldn't hear.

"Linda caught them throwing up their dinner last night and they told her they caught the flu. They're in bed now or something. Linda won't let anyone up or let them down. She said something about a mother always knowing best."

"Alright."

Carlisle walked into the kitchen where Linda was boiling some spaghetti for dinner tonight. She was too scared to cook anything perishable, she was still suspicious that the kids might have food poisoning.

"Hello, Linda. How was your day?"

"Oh, it was great. I really got to know Rosalie today."

Carlisle was a little stunned at that new information. As far as he knew, Rosalie wanted nothing to to do with this whole experience. She was the most upset with Alice for signing them up for the show. He had a hard time believing she would tolerate an afternoon with Linda.

"_I'm actually kind of proud of Rose." Carlisle confessed. "She's not the most pleasant person to get to know, most of the time she can be pretty bitter. Maybe this was a good idea after all . . ."_

Dinner that night was a quiet event. Rosalie had done enough sharing for the day, and Carlisle just didn't have anything to say. The five 'sick' children had told Linda they were too ill to eat. Emmett was hoping he could drag the sick charade on for a while to weasel his way out of more meals. Linda was the one to start talking.

"So, Carlisle. I was thinking, maybe, since the kids will be at school tomorrow, I could come to the hospital with you?"

"Oh, yeah, Linda. That sounds . . . good. I have to leave at six tomorrow morning."

Linda smiled and nodded. She was finally starting to feel like she was getting to know this family, like they were accepting her.


	5. Chapter 5: Day Two: Part Two

**A/N: Oh my gosh, I am so sorry for taking so long. It's been quite a while since my last update. I can explain, I promise.**

**First, I am quite busy during the week, I have school, then I skate after school three times a week.**

**Second, remember that sister I mentioned? Well, she gets home before me, gets on the computer, then when I get home she takes it upstairs into her room and I don't see it again until really late. **

**But now I have a little extra time. So I am choosing to spend it on writing this, just for you guys!**

**Disclaimer: Everything Twilight is Stephenie Meyer's, everything Trading Spouses is the Trading Spouses people's.**

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**Chapter Five: Day Two: The Walling's Home**

Esme had spent the entire night thinking of ways she could redecorate the house without looking like a lunatic. She had several blue prints sprawled across the floor, a few she had made that night, the others were current projects that she had fallen behind on. Overall, it was a very productive night. But because of the very quick thinking, roomy brain she had, she couldn't help but miss her family.

It was around dawn that she decided it would be acceptable for her to emerge from the room. They didn't know anything about her, maybe she was one of those extremely early risers, those people who are efficient at all hours of the day and usually have several chores done before nine o'clock.

She slowly opened the door, not wanting to wake anyone up, and stepped out into the small, quiet hallway. The walls were painted a slightly off white, there was a very cluttered, honey brown table pushed against it with papers and books over flowing off the top. A thick, retro carpet covered the floors. The long fibers seemed to grab and hold onto dirt, making the carpet seem very neglected. It was also extremely out of date.

She made her way to the small, white kitchen. She hadn't cooked much before Bella showed up, but those few years human Bella was a part of the family she had gotten quite good at it. She decided to surprise the family with a homemade breakfast, that way she could just claim she ate before they woke up.

She was just adding a few vegetables to the omelet she had cooking when someone spoke.

"Oh . . . Good morning, Esme." Jim stood awkwardly in the doorway, unsure of what to do. He was an early riser, he liked to be up early doing chores that wouldn't get done during the day. It made him feel like he accomplished something, and on days when there were no early morning chores to be done, he got to do a little work on his planes. Building planes was something he had to do when no one else was awake or around. He hated it when he was in the middle of putting on the second aileron and the kids started bickering, or Linda needed him to rake the leaves. But now Esme was here. He didn't think she was the type of woman who woke up as early has he did, but it would seem as though he was very mistaken. Here she was, cooking breakfast. Who knows how long she had been up for.

Esme turned to smile at Jim.

"Hello, Jim. Why are you up so early?" It was no later that six.

"I always wake up this early. I like to be up early. I do chores and build planes and stuff."

Esme nodded, so Jim was one of those people.

"Did you sleep well?" Jim asked.

"Yes, I did. I had a lovely night."

Jim just kept standing there. Esme wondered why. He looked very uncomfortable. Like he wanted to be somewhere else, but was staying to be polite. She decided to put him out of his misery.

"Well, don't let me keep you from your planes."

"Do you maybe want to see them?" Jim asked. He really didn't think she would, why would she ever want to see his collection of planes?

"Oh, I'd love to!"

She quickly washed her hands, dried them on a dishtowel and followed Jim to one of the biggest rooms in the house; the model room.

It was perfectly square with a large window on the wall facing the outside. The walls were painted the same off white as the halls, the carpet was the same as well. There was a large, wooden table placed precisely in the middle of the room, on it were boxes and papers and half built planes and pieces of planes and tools and strings. There were tons of planes hanging from the ceiling and mounted on the walls, ranging in colours and sizes and eras.

"Wow, this is incredible. There's so much detail!"

Esme was in awe. She had never seen so many planes in one place. They were every where, each one with it's own charm. There were commercial planes, jets, army planes and old fashioned propelled ones. The detail on them was astonishing, they looked exactly like the real ones.

"Do you actually paint these?" She asked.

"Uh, yes. It takes a lot of time."

"I would think so!"

Jim was pleased. No one had ever appreciated his planes the way Esme was. Linda hated them, well hate was too strong, she disliked them. Linda thought they were a waste of time, time Jim could be spending doing more useful things. Sandra and Andy were indifferent. They didn't care what their father did with his time, as long as he wasn't bothering them. He didn't have many friends either, he was too shy, and the few he did have never showed any interest in anything other that drinking beer and watching sports (they were all warehouse workers). So, to take advantage of the first real interest he ever saw on his planes, he launched into a little lesson about each one, and Esme patiently listened, interested in getting to know more about Jim.

"_It felt great to know someone actually appreciates my planes!" Jim confessed. "I work really hard on them and I don't think anybody in this house really gets how much they mean to me, It was great having someone here who was interested and wanted to hear about them. I'm really glad Esme is here."_

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It was eleven o'clock when Andy and Sandra came out of their rooms, ready for the day. Esme's breakfast had long since gone cold and was packed safely in a tupperware container nestled in the fridge. Jim was angry the kids were too lazy to get out of bed earlier and try the breakfast she had made for them.

"Good afternoon, dears." Esme greeted. She wanted to work on getting to know the children better today.

"Hello, Esme." Sandra replied.

Andy just grunted in response.

"Would you like some lunch?" Esme asked, "I can make you whatever you'd like."

"Oh, that's okay, you don't have to do that, Esme." Sandra replied. She was a little surprised. Her mother would never offer that kind of service.

"It's no trouble at all. I don't cook much at home, if you want anything, just let me know."

_Of course, _Sandra thought looking Esme up and down. The clothes she was wearing were obviously very expensive. They looked like clothes you would find in the Upper East side or in Paris. They weren't fancy, they were suitable for everyday life, but you could tell by looking at the fabric and the quality that the turquoise, silk top she wore cost at least two hundred and fifty bucks. She probably didn't cook at home because her family was too good for homemade food. Esme really did not fit in a neighbourhood like this one.

The two kids sprawled across the old couch and Andy started flipping through the channels on the T.V., it wasn't long before the bickering started.

"Andy! I really wanted to watch that! Put it back on." Sandra whined.

There was no response from Andy. He just kept flipping mindlessly through the channels with a sly smile on his face. He was enjoying it.

"Andy!" Sandra repeated, most obviously annoyed. She was quite fed up with the way he acted when there was nothing else to do. He spent his time tormenting her in small ways, moving or hiding her things or doing the channel flipping thing he was doing now.

"What?" Andy asked, much too innocent.

"I wanted to watch that."

"Watch what?" He asked again. Playing dumb was the fastest way to annoy the crap out of Sandra. She hated it when people acted like they didn't know anything when they obviously did. Why did people do that?

Sandra was really frustrated with him now, he was being an idiot and the channels were still racing. She threw a pillow at his head.

Now it was Andy's turn to be angry. His brown hair now resembled some sort of electrocuted look and he had a small throbbing in his head. He hated it when she started to throw things, he could never really fight back, she was a girl, even though she was his sister, and it was against his morals to hurt a girl. It was rather sad. So he did the only thing he could in a situation like this; he kept flipping. He messed with her on a level that was deeper than a physical one.

"_I've noticed that Andy and Sandra really don't get along. It's sad to see such beautiful kids argue like that! I'd really like to see them get along a little more, like when they're just sitting around watching T.V.." Esme confided to the camera, "I think I should help them appreciate each other more, I want to help them get along."_

Esme walked over to the small living room and sat on the armrest of the battered old couch.

"Why don't we just find something you both like? That way you won't fight."

"Um, yeah, okay. What do you want to watch, Andy?" Sandra asked, trying to be pleasant for Esme's sake.

"Nothing. I'm leaving."

He stood up and stalked to the door before putting on a pair of old, ratty skateboard shoes and walked out the door.

"Needs a new attitude as well as a new haircut." Emse mumbled.

There was a beat of silence before Sandra broke into fits of laughter. Esme smiled, she was finally connecting to Sandra on one level.

Esme and Sandra spent the rest of the afternoon talking about everything. Sandra's school and friends and classes, and a little about Andy.

Esme was quite glad that Sandra opened up to her, they got just a little bit closer during those few short hours.

Next, was Andy.

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**A/N: I tried to make this one longer. It kind of is, I think.**

**Anyways, again, sorry for the long wait. I really didn't do it on purpose. Things just come up, and it doesn't help that I rarely see the computer. **

**So here is chapter five. I hope you enjoyed the further look into the complex inner workings of the Walling family. I really have to figure them out more . . . I feel like there's something Andy isn't telling me . . . I don't really know what he does in his spare time or anything. But I do know what is going to happen to him sometime during the week (I'll give you a hint: Alice would be jealous). **

**Well, drop me a line by clicking that lovely green "Review This Story" button, they mean quite a bit to me.**

**Until next time,**

**tanis ann**


	6. Chapter 6: Day Three: Part One

**A/N: Okay, well I am all of a sudden in a really big writing mood, and my hoggy sister is playing some stupid video game with her friend and I have control of the computer. **

**Plus, I'm going to Kimberly, B.C. for the FIVE DAY WEEKEND (It's Family Day weekend) and won't be able to update again until at least Tuesday, I'll be too busy shredding the mountain (and I won't have my computer). So I decided I'm going to work super duper hard on this one to get a new chapter out to you to sustain you for the next five days, so you only have somewhat of a comedy drought while I am gone (haha, I flatter myself way too much!) **

**So, enjoy, and try not to fall into depression while I'm gone!**

**Disclaimer: Nothing in mine.**

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**Day Three: The Cullen's Home**

Linda had slept soundly through the night. There was no one throwing up in the middle of the night. She didn't have to spend the night worrying about whether or not she wasn't helping enough, or that there was something more she could do for the five kids that were hunched over the toilet, making horrible, forced, unnatural sounds. It was nice.

It was five when her alarm started blaring in her ears. She wondered again why in the world she was up at this ungodly hour, oh yeah, she was going to the hospital today. She had never been particularly interested in the inner workings of medicine, but she didn't want to stay home in this huge house all alone.

She literally slid out of her bed and landed on her bottom with a muted _thump_. For a second she worried she may have woken someone, but the she realized she was too tired to care, and stood up to try and find a shower.

It was while she was half asleep wandering the many halls of the house that she bumped into little Alice Cullen. She hadn't gotten to know Alice very well, although she did know that she was a very enthusiastic child . . . and loved to shop.

"Linda! Good morning!"

"Hello, Alice." Linda replied, squinting. Alice's decibel level was giving her a headache.

"Linda, I was thinking. Maybe we could go shopping today, and we could get you a haircut and I could give you a makeover."

Linda's mind was working very slowly this morning. It took her a while to answer Alice's suggestion.

"Um, Alice? Don't you have to go to school today?" She asked. This kids seemed much to well behaved to skip school.

"No . . . It's a day off. We don't have to go today, there's a . . . teacher's convention." Alice lied smoothly. She really did not want to go to school when there was someone living in her house that needed so much help. Plus, she had been through high school several times and it was really getting old.

"Alright, Alice. Let me take a shower first."

"_I'm so excited to give Linda a makeover! I mean, she's such a great person, and I think that she really needs a new wardrobe to bring out who she really is inside. I think she's really going to enjoy our time together." Alice gushed to the camera. "Plus, what the heck is on her head!? If you're going to cut your hair in the ugliest way possible, a mullet, at least make it a well cut one! But don't worry world! I'll save our eyes, we'll get rid of the monstrosity!" _

While Linda went to the shower, Alice went to take care of a bit if pre-makeover business. First, was getting Bella to go as well.

"Bella!" She sang as she skipped in the room shared by Edward and Bella. "Get your things, we are taking Linda out on the town!"

"Alice, we have to go to school, and I don't want to go." Bella answered, a little irritated. She hadn't been on one of Alice's shopping adventures in a while, she was starting to hold her own, and she was really hoping that it would be quite a while before she had to go again. It was a painful experience every time.

"No, we don't. There's a 'teacher's convention'," Alice said making air quotes. "Plus, it was just going to be the same boring stuff that always happens."

At that last statement Bella was torn. On the one hand, school was absolutely agonizing thing to do everyday. It was like torture. She had been through the same few years of high school over and over again, learning the same boring curriculum. It wasn't fun the first time, just imagine how horrid it is the tenth or eleventh time. But on the other hand, shopping with Alice. Enough said.

"Alright, fine, Alice." She decided school outweighed shopping.

"You made the right choice." Alice said, very serious, before immediately brightening up. "I'll go get Rose!"

Bella watched Alice flash out of the room, then packed a few items, like her wallet. While she was assembling the few items in her small bag, she heard the quiet conversation between Alice and Rosalie.

"No, Alice. I don't want to come. I don't even like her."

"Rosalie! Don't even say things like that! Come on, it will be fun."

"Okay, I'll come if you leave."

"Deal!"

About an hour later the four women had assembled in the living room. Linda still wasn't completely awake, if Alice were human she would have peed herself from sheer excitement, Bella really didn't want to go and Rosalie was impassive. No one knew what to say, it was silent until Linda's stomach growled quite loudly.

"I need to eat," she sighed, and walked into the kitchen. Where Emmett was currently sitting.

His eyes widened much past normal as he heard her approach. He had eaten so much food for her sake already, and he really couldn't take much more. He got up and tried to sneak out of the room before she caught him.

"Oh, good morning, Emmet." Linda said when she entered the kitchen and saw him standing in the middle of the room.

"Hello, Linda." His tone was very irregular. It was a strange mix of a squeak, where his voice cracked, a sigh and a fake politeness. He hoped she didn't catch it.

"Feeling any better?"

"Uh, yep. Healthy as a horse." He said while smacking his fist against his chest.

She smiled.

"That's good. Glad to hear it. So, what are you up to today?"

Emmett didn't know what to answer with. Should he lie and make something up? or should he just tell her what he was actually planning on doing; making a stone sculpture of Rosalie with a boulder in their backyard?

He decided to lie.

"Me and Edward are going to . . ." he couldn't think of anything, his eyes quickly looked around the room, he needed something to say! "Learn to cook together!"

He mentally slapped himself for that answer. It was almost as bad as 'medicine is taboo', their father is a doctor, for goodness sake. But he was really bad at being put on the spot. If she didn't ask him so many questions, then he wouldn't have to come up with so many dumb answers.

"Hm, sounds like fun. Maybe you guys can cook dinner." She joked, although there was some seriousness in her tone. She did want them to cook.

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It was about nine o'clock when Linda decided it was acceptable for them to leave the house and go to the mall. They were going to Seattle after all. The quadrant exited the house.

The three vampires could hear Emmett yelling for Edward.

"Edward!" He called, "I need you to teach me to cook really good by the time they get back."

"Why?"

"Um, because when Linda asked what I was doing today I told her we were learning to cook . . ."

"Emmett! Why did you tell her that? Couldn't you have just said you were going to catch up on some homework or something?"

"Oh. That would have been a better idea!" Emmett laughed.

"Idiot." Edward mumbled while taking out some pots and pans to begin a sure to be painful lesson.

The women were about halfway through the yard when Alice shouted.

"Let's take my car!"

"Your car?" Linda asked as Rosalie sighed and rolled her eyes. There was a reason the Porsche was hidden.

Alice ran, at human speed, into the trees before returning in her flashy yellow Porsche.

Linda climbed into the front seat and asked, completely astonished.

"How did you get the money to pay for this?"

"I worked six jobs for three years." Alice answered quickly. She had her response all planned out.

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After arriving in Seattle, Alice drove straight to the biggest mall in the city. Because it was a weekday afternoon, it was relatively empty. They got a parking spot nice and close and Alice tugged Linda into a hair salon first. That mullet thing needed to go!

Linda sat down in one of the leather salon chairs trying to make sense of what Alice was saying to the stylist. Something about layers and highlights and how long she wanted what parts. Linda was a bit nervous. She had never gotten her hair cut by anyone other than Tracy, her stylist at home. She had been seeing Tracy for years, and even moved from getting her hair done at _Cool Cuts _to _The Saloon_ when Tracy got a new job. It felt like betrayal. What would Tracy say?

After a few snips here and a few snips there, a dying session, more cutting and then some styling, Linda was done.

Her hair had gone from the monstrosity of all hair to a much more in fashionable bob. Her bangs were no longer just a bit of fuzz on the top of her head. They were nicely conditioned and cut and were now parted to the right side of her face. The front was longer and then got about an inch shorter by the back. Her hair had been straightened to take away the natural wave it had and had a few modest, lighter blonde highlights throughout it. She looked absolutely gorgeous!

"Oh. My. Gosh. Linda! You look amazing!" Alice cried. Very pleased with how phase one turned out.

Bella and Rose nodded in agreement and gave Linda small compliments.

Alice payed for the cut, much to Linda's dismay, and then whisked the rest of the group to store after store after store. She made Linda try on millions of different outfits and tops and bottoms and dresses and shoes and accessories. Approving of only about half of them. Alice payed for everything, and even added a few things of her own to the pile.

Overall, a very successful trip from Alice's point of view, a very dull trip from Rose's, Bella was just thankful Alice didn't buy anything for her (or so she thought), and Linda was completely exhausted. She was very thankful for the long drive home.

Alice chatted excitedly about how the makeover was only halfway done and there was still so much more she could do to make Linda look fabulous. Truthfully, no one was listening.

There was quite a ruckus going on in the house when they got home. It seemed as though Jasper decided he wanted in on the cooking lesson as well, and it ended up being a very messy, but enjoyable, day, considering how fun flour is to throw at someone else.

The four women, who were carrying about four bags each, walked into the house and stopped dead in their tracks.

It seemed as though every dish in the house was dirty. There were about four plates of burned food on the counter and flour covering every inch of the available surface. At the moment, Edward was lying on his back, covered head to toe in flour and some kind of batter, Emmett was standing over Edward in the middle of shoving a wooden spoon covered in something chocolaty in his face, while Edward tried to push it away. And Jasper was standing on the counter over them both, pouring the remaining bowl of chocolate batter on Emmett's head. They froze when they realized they had been caught.

"Oh. Hello, there. Was your shopping trip fun?" Emmett asked still perfectly poised over Edward.

"You are such an idiot." Rosalie said, shaking her head.

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**A/N: Well, there you go. I think this was a fun chapter. **

**Let me know what you think?**

**Drop me a line.**

**Until next time,**

**tanis ann**


	7. Chapter 7: Day Three: Part Two

**A/N: I'm baaack!**

**And I had a very wonderful time (I want to go back, I miss Kimberly)! Although I know that you probably really don't care about how my long weekend went, I'm going to tell you a few highlights anyways! Yay! **

**So, first of all, we had an Oktoberfest! In February! (If you've ever been to Kimberly, you'll know it has this sort of German flair (the Platzl, for example)) And we gave eachother German names (I was Uley). And talked in German accents (these two Welsh boys we met actually thought we were from Germany).**

**And we slid down part of the ski hill on old boxes and a broiling pan (which was really fun, but very painful, I have bruises all over). And we did a scavenger hunt on the ski hill and won 2nd place (which was dinner in an igloo!) and 3rd place (which was $150.00 gift card to RCR Resorts). **

**Overall, an excellent family day long weekend!**

**And now, onto the part you all came here for!**

**Disclaimer: Nothing is mine.**

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**Chapter Seven: The Walling's Home**

Nights were extremely boring for Esme. Although she loved sorting and viewing and drawing new blue prints, it got pretty boring when you looked at them for 12 hours a day and had no one to share them with. These long nights made her wish two things; 1) that her family was here with her or 2) that she could sleep. It was times like these that made her extremely envious of the slumbering world.

She decided that she could be an insomniac. She didn't sleep, so if anyone ever asked what was wrong with her, insomnia was the perfect excuse. She left the room about a half hour earlier than yesterday, she had nothing to do and was beginning to feel extremely claustrophobic. She stepped out onto the very psychedelic carpet and began to slowly make her way down the hall. Being out in the hallway really didn't help. There was that one cluttered table taking up a large amount of space, and the objects it could no longer hold were scattered along the ground. Things that looked like they hadn't been used in years filled every inch of available space on the table. She felt like she could almost hear the legs whining in protest. About six feet down the hallway was an old metal shelf. It looked like it belonged in a garage or an undone basement. There were sections that were duct taped together and it leaned slightly to the right. Similar to the table, the shelf had massive amounts of papers and books and CDs and cassette tapes and even old toys piled on it. That didn't even looks safe. It was a hazard. Every hallway she entered was similar to this one. They all had various storage instruments taking up most of the space, and they were always as full as possible.

As a complete contradiction to the hallways, the rooms were practically bare. The living room had an old, stained couch in the shape of a V, a very used coffee table, two end tables donning each side of the couch, each holding a very mismatched lamp. One of the lamps used a combination of browns and reds, there were crystal beads hanging from the shade and the post was an elephant standing on its hind legs. The other lamp was very round in shape with a large round base. It was white, but the lamp shade had ropes and horse shoes wrapping around the bottom. And on that large round base, was a very bow legged cow boy, hands on his holsters. There was a thick, black T.V. in front of the couch. The walls were bare except one painted picture of the dessert, painted with oranges, purples, reds and blues.

After doing a round of the house, and only to be very unpleasantly surprised with what she saw, she knew what she had to do. She was going to Ikea!

"_I was really astonished at the amount of furniture this family had in the house! Most of the rooms are completely bare, and the hallways are overflowing with useless stuff! I'm really hoping that my little surprise won't be too horribly received."_

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It was not long before Esme had reached the enormous parking lot for Ikea. It too her a while to find a parking spot, but it was not long before she was inside the humongous store. Armed with a shopping cart the size of a small car, she started to make her way through the Ikea maze. First stop: Bed sheets.

There were many to choose from, flower prints (ones that were more tasteful that the ones presently on the bed), solid colours and other various designs. She decided to go with a basic brown, one that would match almost anything. She picked up a few, all in neutral colours, for any other beds that may need some sprucing up.

The next stop was couches. After deciding to stay inside the brown colour scheme, she chose a modest brown leather couch, big enough to fit the entire family and a few friends.

She chose out new lamps, coffee tables, end tables, throw pillows, picture frames, blinds, plants, various pieces of other furniture and plenty of desks. By the end of the trip, she had filled six large carts with all her purchases, and had six young, male employees pushing them. She was quite thankful for the large van.

The six very helpful young boys graciously loaded everything she had purchased, and made her way to a paint store, where she picked up several buckets of paint in browns, golds and soft yellows.

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She drove much faster than usual, anxious to get home and start the renovations. And arrived home before 9 o'clock.

"Good morning, everyone," she called into the door, her arms loaded with boxes and bags. She took just enough to make it look like she was just strong, rather than freakishly strong.

"Wow . . . What is all that stuff?" Asked Sandra completely amazed at the amount of baggage that came through the door.

"Oh, it's not much. I just bought some new furniture for you guys, I just thought this could be a fun little project for us to do."

"Um . . . okay . . ." Sandra replied.

"Alright!" Esme smiled, "let's crack these babies open."

The four of them (even Andy) began to assemble various pieces of furniture with strange Swedish names. There were only a few minor mess ups, Andy had assembled one of the coffee tables upside down, and Jim couldn't read the instructions on one of the desks.

It was about 8 hours of labor later, that they had finished putting together all of the furniture. Jim and Esme had even moved the old couch out to one of the dumpsters in the alley out back and had moved the new couch in.

"Good job, everyone. Now lets start painting!" Esme said enthusiastically.

Andy was really reluctant to help with this. Him being a male, didn't really see the need to redecorate as much as Esme, or even Sandra did. Nor did he particularly enjoy spending his afternoon putting furniture together, or painting the walls of the living room. And on top of it all, he didn't like spending time with the family. Esme was nice enough, but there were better ways he could be spending the afternoon.

"_I am actually so glad Esme did this for us. This place is a dump. And my mom bought all of our pervious furniture from a garage sale, which is gross. And she's such a nice person, when she first came in here with all her expensive clothing and matched luggage, I thought she was going to be a total snob_ _and we were going to have to deal with this high class mother who had never done a days work in her life. I'm happy to be wrong." Sandra told the cameras. _

The living room had the first coat of paint on the walls. It was a soft brown, not too dark, but not so light it was beige. The room was really starting to come together. All of the various colours and new pieces of furniture tied nicely together, nothing seemed out of place anymore.

Jim, although wasn't showing any emotion, was very pleased with the _Extreme Makeover: Home Edition_ that was taking place in his own home. Esme was a very friendly, nice, caring person and it was lovely having her around. He always thought their home needed more of a theme. But they just couldn't afford new furniture on their budget. He really appreciated what she was doing for them, and he was really glad they didn't end up with some insane, racist mother, or something. He also really enjoyed the time he was spending with the kids. He didn't see them much on a regular basis, and he hadn't really spent any time with them in the last few months. It was very nice that Esme could not only redecorate their house, but bring their family together, too.

"Wow, guys. This is really looking great!" Jim said with as much enthusiasm as his flat voice could muster.

Esme smiled and nodded.

"Let's go out for dinner," Esme suggested. "To celebrate. My treat."

"Yeah, that sounds great, but you've already done so much for us, Esme." Jim replied. He was starting to fee very guilty. Esme had done so much for them already, and he couldn't just sit by and watch her make all those sacrifices for a family she met two days ago. It just wasn't fair.

"Oh, don't think anything of it. We never go out to eat in my family. It'll be fun."

"I thought you said you didn't cook much?" Sandra asked suspiciously. She distinctly remembered Esme saying she didn't cook much at home. But if they didn't go out . . . how did they eat?

"My son likes to cook." She replied smoothly. She had a small hesitation on the answer, but it wasn't long enough for anyone to notice.

"Oh, nice."

"So it's settled." Esme said. "We'll go out."

She was not over excited about the eating part. But she was excited about spending some more time with the family. She wanted to get closer to Andy. He was so distant all the time. He was the one person of the family she knew absolutely nothing about.

It was a short, quite drive to a small local restaurant. It wasn't crowded, and they soon got a table.

There was relaxed, easy conversation coming from everyone at the table except Andy. He just sat in his chair silently nibbling on his chicken fingers and fries. It concerned Esme (who was able to choke down a whole dinner without making any faces).

Why was he so distant?

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**A/N: Well, there you go. Esme gets to do her redecoration of the house!**

**And like I said in the last chapter about the Wallings, there's something Andy is keeping from me! And its frustrating me, I feel like I can't write about him because I would just be spewing lies! I need to figure out what's wrong with this kid . . .**

**Anyways, I really hope you enjoyed this chapter. And feel free to drop me a line, anytime, they really make me feel good. And they let me know that there are people out there who care!**

**Have a great weekend, **

**Until next time,**

**tanis ann**


	8. Chapter 8: Day Four: Part One

**A/N: I am so sorry this is so late. But I have a good excuse! My English teacher is insane and decided she should assign us a wondrous project known as the Novel Contract. Well, it started out okay, I read **_**The Great Gatsby**_**, but then we had to write like a collection of small essays complete with edits and rough drafts. Needless to say, it was a huge project (and I'm considering hitting my teacher in the face) and the final product turned out to be 98 pages long. I was quite tired of writing on the computer, so I took an extended break of any work related computing. And it's been like -35 degrees (Celsius) in March! and I was really not in the right writing mindset. **

**But I'm back now and it's warmer outside (I think it's above zero) and I'm eating Nutella with a spoon and ready to write you all a wonderful chapter for your patience with me.**

**Okay, just to clear something up down the line, I did once say it was set in the future, but I don't like that anymore. It doesn't fit with a few things I want to do, so it's set about a year or so later, Renesmee just never happened. And assume that the treaty issues were all worked out in the end and everyone is friends.**

**Disclaimer: I only own the fictional Walling family.**

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**Chapter Eight: The Cullens Home**

The kitchen was once again presentable. The tons of flour, globs of chocolate batter and all the dishes had been cleaned up by three very remorseful boys under the watchful eyes of Linda Walling. She would tolerate nothing less that perfection from them.

Needless to say, Linda was rather shocked at the scene that was played out for her when the four women returned form their shopping trip. The kitchen was completely defaced, and the boys were no longer recognizable they were covered in so much filth. Linda didn't expect this kind of behavior from them, they seemed like such good boys. She was completely horrified, and even more horrified at what Carlisle's reaction would be. She could only imagine that he would be even more shocked than she. They were his kids after all. So she reached deep into herself and pulled out what was long since buried; her motherly strictness. And forced them to clean it up (which was much easier to do than she expected). So she watched them wipe (at human speed, much to the boy's dismay) every inch of surface on the expansive granite counter tops, sweep the flour from the honey brown hardwood floors and scrub the dried batter from the stainless steel appliances.

It took them about three hours to clean the kitchen. Every surface was practically shining with the precision of their scrubbing and cleaning and wiping. Linda was very proud of their cleaning job. And their impeccable, timing as well. Carlisle walked through the door only moments after they had finished. It was like they knew he was approaching.

Carlise silently came through the door after a long shift. He was mentally exhausted, but still noticed the improvements to the kitchen.

"What happened in the kitchen?" He asked even though he knew the answer: Emmett happened.

Linda was a little astonished he noticed. Even though the kitchen did look remarkably cleaner than it did three hours ago, there was not much of a change from before the disastrous lesson. Carlisle hadn't been in the kitchen for about nine hours. There was no way she would have ever noticed a difference.

"Just a cooking lesson." Emmett replied.

Out of the corner of her eye, Linda thought she saw Edward give Carlisle a small nod. But she couldn't guess as to what it was for. Carlisle hadn't asked a question.

"You were cooking?" Carlisle asked incredulously. He couldn't even imagine a world where Emmett cooked.

"Edward was teaching me." Emmett replied.

The answer just shocked Carlisle even more. Not only could he not imagine a world where Emmett would cook, but one that involved Edward teaching him? Now that was impossible.

"Um, I wasn't planning on cooking dinner because we ate when we were at the mall today, is that okay?"

"Yes!" Emmett shouted, elated, "We ate while we were cooking, how about you Carlisle, hungry?"

"No, I ate while on my break not long ago. I'm fine."

"Alright, if you guys are all good I'm going to go to bed now, I'm exhausted." Linda said.

She slowly made her way to the staircase. Glancing curiously at each of the vampires in the living room before trudging her way upstairs.

Once she was out of hearing range and the camera's had left, probably following Linda (the new mother always provided the most excitement), Carlisle turned to Edward.

"Is she suspicious of us?" He asked.

"She thinks you're unnaturally observant, and we're all a little bit strange and she thinks it's weird that Emmett never wants to eat and always acts really jumpy around her."

"Why are you so jumpy around her, Emmett?" Carlisle asked.

"I don't know. She puts too much pressure on me all the time. I know Edward is a natural born liar, but I'm an innocent boy. I can't think up stories that fast. I get really nervous when she's around because I know she's going to ask me something I don't have an answer for. I don't want to eat anymore!" Emmett cried, exasperated.

The rest of the vampires were silent. Not even Edward was expecting Emmett's little outburst. Emmett was not one to get so wound up, he was usually the one to shrug everything off. Even things that should not be shrugged off. No one knew what to say to him. It was so uncharacteristic they didn't know how to deal with it. They needed Esme.

"Uh," Edward started, "Why don't we do a little hunting to let you blow off some steam, okay? You'll be able to eat something that doesn't taste bad."

Emmett sighed and nodded. He really did need to get out.

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Linda woke up the next morning to another cloudy day. The weather had been like that the entire time she had been here. It was always gloomy outside, and that made her miss the sunny Atlanta days that she had at home. It was impossible to tell the time by looking outside, the sun was completely hidden, so she lazily rolled over to look at her alarm clock. 8:43 am. It was a fairly justified time to start the flopped out of bed and stumbled into her personal bathroom to take a shower.

It was about a half an hour later she emerged from her room. No one else was awake yet, so she decided to make them all a hearty breakfast. Emmett hadn't been eating lately, and that worried her. He was a big boy and needed to get a fair amount of food, but every time she asked if he wanted anything he would become all strange and paranoid. It made her nervous, so she made her son Andy's favourite breakfast; bacon, sausage and eggs.

Linda was just slicing some cheese and vegetables to add to the frying eggs when she looked outside and saw the most enormous bear she had ever see in her entire life. It was a reddish brown colour, with slightly shaggy fur. Its shoulder's were about the height of Linda's shoulders. The sight made her freeze in her position. She was terrified, to say the least, there were no bears back at her home and she had never spent any notable amount of time near the woods and she had no idea how to deal with bears. Especially bears of that size. She did the only thing she could think of doing. She called the Forest Rangers.

The Treaty between the wolves and the vampires had been slightly adjusted since Bella's change. Jacob had been quite upset by the lack of response from the pack, but Sam had decided that it was her choice to make the change, nothing was being forced upon her. The relationship had been a bit strained for a while. Even though the wolves had decided the treaty was still intact, it made them slightly nervous to have a change occurring so close to home. The Cullens had met with them and they created a suitable compromise. The wolves would be allowed to survey the Cullen's land every once and a while to make themselves feel better about the arrangement that had been made. Today was one of the days Sam decided was a good day to survey the land. It was not a good day to survey the land. The wolves had not been notified of a human visitor, and were not taking the time to make sure they would go unseen. Linda had spotted Jacob, and he had not noticed. She was now calling the Forest Rangers and they would be here in a matter of minutes. It had only been about a one year since the wolves had gotten sloppy the first time and there were several sightings of massive bears in the area.

"Yeah, I just saw one. I was huge!" Linda said into the phone.

"How big would you estimate, ma'am?" The ranger on the other end asked.

"Well, its shoulders were at least five feet tall, probably more."

"There were a few sightings like your own about a year ago. It might be one of the same ones seen then. We'll be there soon."

"Thank you, good bye," she replied and hung the phone up before making sure all the doors and windows were locked. Just incase.

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Edward was minding his own business in his room. He was, as all the other children were, forbidden to spend any notable amounts of time with his significant other. It would be too weird to broadcast a family who were all sleeping together. So he spent his morning alone. Mostly organizing his music collection in several various ways. It was an easy was to preoccupy his mind. He was not really listening to anything outside his room. He could hear that Linda was cooking, and somewhat anxious about something that he wasn't interested in enough to care. Carlisle had left for the hospital. Emmett and Jasper had already 'woken up' and were playing some new card game they had invented. Bella was reading in her room. Rosalie was sorting her clothes. And Alice was working on some intense fashion involved project. There was nothing to tug his attention away from his sorting until he heard the familiar sound of tires turning onto the long dirt drive to the house. There weren't expecting anyone, were they? He used his extra abilities to listen further.

_Another large bear sighting. I thought we were done with all of this. Those bears just seemed to pick up and leave one day. I guess they're back for round two. _The mental voice sighed.

There were two men in the car. Forest Rangers. They were investigating bears. This was the first time they had ever come out here. Of course the Cullens never called them, and the only other people who ever came out this far were hikers who were expecting bears or other animals. He was somewhat perplexed until a sudden realization came to him; Linda was here. And the wolves did routine searches around these woods. Normally, they weren't concerned with going unseen. All the Cullens knew they existed and it was unnecessary. But they hadn't been notified of Linda's visit. It must have slipped their minds. The search was so routine it went by unnoticed most of the time. If Linda had seen them, which Edward was assuming she had, she would have practically ripped the phone off the wall in her haste to call the Forest Rangers. Who wouldn't?

He ran down the stairs as fast as was acceptable, a little frantically even, until he ended up in the kitchen.

"Sleep well?" He asked. His tone was not completely deranged, but there was a little bit of an off tone in it.

"Oh, hello Edward, I didn't hear you come in." Linda said a little startled.

Edward nodded and then started his cross examination.

"Nice view, isn't it?" He gestured towards the window-wall.

"Oh yeah, it's nice. But I saw an enormous bear outside about half an hour ago. Don't worry, though, I already called the Forest Rangers. They should be here quite soon."

"Okay, great." He replied.

He could hear the rangers. They were very close. taking the last few turns of the long drive. It would be only moments until they climbed the eight steps to the front door and Linda told them everything she heard last night. It relaxed him some to know that they had safely gotten rid of all evidence. He clung onto that fact that as he heard the three menacing knocks on the large white door. Emmett and Jasper turned to him with questioning looks on their faces. He gave them a small shake of the head as if to tell them he couldn't talk now.

Linda quickly made her way to the door and greeted the two uniformed men at the door.

"Hello, sirs, please come in." She greeted.

"Did you call about the bears?" The first man asked. His name tag read Pinsky_._

"Yes, it was me. I was just making breakfast when a huge bear stepped out from the trees. It was only about a half an hour ago."

"Do you mind if we take a look around the woods outside?" The second, whose name tag read Burg, asked.

"No, no, not at all. Take all the time you want." She answered.

This upset Edward. Although he was very sure they wouldn't find anything. The wolves would hear people approaching and would make sure to stay out of sight. It still unsettled him to have them snooping around, though.

Linda and the cameras followed the two rangers outside. Probably to give them more details about what went on last night, or the general area where they should search.

Edward turned to the two boys seated on the floor to explain.

"Linda saw Jacob outside. She called the Forest Rangers to inspect."

"What do we do?" Jasper asked.

"I guess we have to wait it out." Replied Edward, "The wolves should know when they're coming and will make sure to stay out of sight. They shouldn't find anything."

The two nodded in response. All they had to do was wait out a search that would turn out empty.

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The two Rangers, Pinsky and Burg, were aimlessly wandering the woods outside a large white house. They didn't expect to find anything. Bears were not uncommon around this part of the state, but they were rarely seen by hikers or citizens during daily life. You had to travel fairly far into the forest to really start spotting bears. Neither Ranger really knew what to do if they did see one of the beasts. They were known to be fairly viscous, even murdered a few people the last time they were seen in town. The had tried to contain them then but no one could find them after a few weeks. Now, here they were again. Searching for the same elusive, aggressive bears that had haunted the forest just over a year ago.

"Do you think we're actually going to find anything out here?" Burg asked Pinsky, his superior.

"Probably not. Bears are pretty difficult to find in the woods. The only people who ever see them are the ones who stumble on them by accident."

The irony of that statement was at that exact moment one of the less experienced wolves, who was sent with Jacob for his first time, stumbled out of the woods. It was easy to tell he was a juvenile, His paws were large and oversized, his ears floppy and too big. This evaluation only served to scare the Rangers even more. If there was a cub here, then the mother must be nearby.

The three of them were frozen. All starting at each other. None of them wanted to be the first to move, to make any sudden movements. So they stood there for who knows how long. Staring. It was not until Jacob slowly came from within the trees that there was any sort of movement. His large reddish body crept up to the smaller wolf, keeping his eyes on the two men at all times, in an effort to reassure. He made a small growl-esque kind of noise to catch the juvenile's attention before grabbing the skin between his shoulder blades and dragging him back into the trees.

The two men stood in the trees for what felt like forever. They didn't know what to do. Those bears her enormous, and close up didn't quite look like bears, but more like massive wolves. Genetically engineered wolves. The Rangers looked at each other before turning and running in the opposite direction.

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It had been quiet for about 45 minutes. Edward was starting to relax some more and the six children were all gathered in the living room watching a mindless movie. It was the only time this week they had really spent any time together. Everything had to be so played out, they couldn't show anything more than brotherly or sisterly affection for their significant others. But now they could at least squish on the couch together and it wouldn't look like anything except siblings having a fun afternoon together. When all of a sudden Edward stood and muttered a curse.

"What is it?" Bella asked him.

"Sam sent one of the newer wolves with Jacob, and he wasn't paying attention. The Rangers saw him and Jacob."

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It was only minutes later when the house was surrounded with Forest Rangers. They just kept coming and coming. Each one disappearing into the woods within minutes of must have been hundreds of them in the woods surrounding the big white house.

The six vampires inside the house were quite panicked. Too many people were in the woods now. It was attracting too much attention, this scenario was heading down a very dangerous road already. Alice had called Carlisle at work and he was on his way there, hopefully to resolve all of the present problems. And Bella had called Jacob to see if they had gotten out of the forest (which they all assumed they had).

The search had been going on for hours. Rangers were coming and going by the minute. Carlisle had been home for a while and working very hard to resolve whatever issue were being presented. He was doing a very good job of convincing everyone that what they saw was just a pair of bears on the higher end of the height spectrum. And also that there may have been a bit of embellishing the second and third time the story had been told. The bears probably weren't as large as they were described. It was human nature to make stories sound more exciting.

Linda had spent her last few hours talking to Ranger after Ranger after Ranger. She was exhausted. When she called in about the bear she really didn't expect there to be s many formalities to go through. She had to describe the bear over and over again. She filled out hundreds of sheets of paperwork and her hand was severely cramped. She was tired of talking to people and telling the same story over and over again. She really wished that she had never called the bear in. And she really missed her kids and Jim and her home. These people were just too strange. There were too many of them and they all seemed to be functioning on some strange supernatural level. She wanted to go home.

The chaos continued well into the evening. Everyone living in the big white house was mentally spent. They wanted everyone to go home so they could settle down into their nightly routine again.

It took an hour or two more for the search to finally be called off. The Rangers decided it was probably only two or three of the large bears that had wandered off. The two Rangers who had seen them were okay anyways. Everyone cleared out just as fast as they had arrived. Soon the large meadow expanding out in front of the large white house was empty. Linda had trudged back into the house, ready for sleep, and the cameras had been turned off for the night. Emmett was the one to break the tranquil silence.

"Crisis averted."

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**Phew, there you go. I worked about three days on his chapter. I had written about five pages before I decided that what was happening was not quite what I wanted. So I pretty much had to rewrite it all.**

**Anyways I hope you enjoyed this. Tell me if you did, tell me if you didn't. Just press that lil' green button.**

**Until next time,**

**- tanis ann**


	9. Chapter 9: Day Four: Part Two

**A/N: Alright, I'm really sorry for the long wait, I know it's been quite a while since the last time I updated this story. Because crazy English teacher decided to strike a second and third time! I did an enormous poetry project and I have a big Shakespeare one coming up rather soon too. I swear, she will be the death of me. **

**And, like many of you already know, I've been having a great amount of writer's block every time it comes to writing about Esme at the Walling's house. I don't know if we'll ever get to find out what's wrong with Andy . . . **

**Disclaimer: Nothing but the fictional Walling family is mine. **

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**Chapter Nine: The Walling's Home**

Esme sat in the newly redecorated living room. There was less furniture, but more storage space. There was no more clutter or old books begging for space. Everything had its own spot now. She took a deep breath. She was really missing her family. This separation reminded her of the time when Edward left. Of course, it was not even close to how painful that separation had been, but it was comparable. She hadn't seen them, or been in contact with them in almost a week. She took comfort in the idea that she would be seeing them soon.

Thinking of her family reminded her of one very crucial detail about herself that she had been neglecting the last few weeks. She hadn't hunted since she left Forks, which was four days ago. Her eyes would be quite a bit darker than when she arrived and that burning in her throat was much more prominent. Lucky for her it was 3:47 am. No one was awake, not the family or the camera people. It would be easy for her to silently slip out and in before anyone even knew she was gone.

As she strolled silently down the pathway in front of the Walling's house she mused at how much more she loved the small, mountainous place she called home than this large busy city. For one, it was quite a bit more convenient to live in a place where there were large deer and elk just feet away. She knew it was the story they told everyone, the doctor's wife wanted to live in a small town, not the city. The story turned out to have some truth in it, the small rainy town was so much more private. Jasper and Emmett could fight in the backyard and no one would hear. Rosalie and Alice could lie out in the sun on warm, sunny days and no one would see. That small town gave them the lives they had always wanted. It was a blessing, and she missed the comforting cloud cover, and the large walls the trees and mountains made around her home. She missed her family.

It was quite a bit harder than she thought it would be to find suitable animals to hunt. She found plenty of squirrels and pigeons, but she couldn't hunt those. She wandered around Atlanta for about an hour before she stumbled upon a large open field. She presumed it was on the edge of the city because it spanned for miles, but she couldn't be sure because she didn't actually know where she was. But this large field looked very promising. It took her a while, but not long after she discovered a few small coyotes. It wasn't much, but they would be enough to satire her thirst until she returned home to Forks.

It was nearing six o'clock in the morning when she could see the small house in view. The house still looked like everyone inside was sleeping soundly. It was dark and quiet. She had made it out and back in time. She took a relieved breath that got caught in her throat when she heard someone puttering around the house. Someone was awake. She didn't know who it was, but she could very distinctly hear footsteps quickly, but quietly moving around. She slowed her steps, she needed time to think of a suitable excuse. The easy one would be that she couldn't sleep and went for a walk, but who goes for walks during the night in a not so safe neighborhood? Whoever was awake inside the house was obviously in a rush. The person was practically running around the house. Esme heard the person bump into something, a desk or table, and something fell off and smashed on the floor. She heard the person curse. The voice was obviously male. She didn't think it could be Jim, he was much to calm and laid back to be running around the house in this fashion, but Andy seemed like the kind of boy to sleep in until one o'clock in the afternoon. She thought it must have been a thief. No one else would be awake this early. Jim was an early riser, but wouldn't be running around the house like this. She started to walk faster, not so fast that she looked unnatural though. She would defend this family she had come to love!

She was about to step onto the front lawn when the old white door swung open. She quickly darted behind the neighbor's hedges to avoid being seen by the intruder. But it was not an intruder who stepped through the door frame. It was Andy. The seventeen year old boy stepped out from the house, and turned around to lock the door again. He looked suspiciously to the right, then the left before jogging down the front steps and quickly walking away from the house. Esme cocked her head to the side in confusion. Why was Andy leaving the house at 6 am? Because he was walking it would be easy for her to follow his scent. She ran up the stairs and into the house, quickly writing a note to Jim saying she was sorry she didn't make breakfast, but she wanted to see the city a little bit more and would pick up groceries on her way home. Satisfied with what she had written, she ran into her room to grab a jacket, it was not that warm out today, before leaving the house. Following Andy's trail.

Esme had been following Andy for quite a while. She could not see him, but his trail was still strong. They were starting to get into neighborhoods that had more money, the houses were bigger and the lawns were neater. Obviously Andy wasn't up to no good. If he were, wouldn't he be heading into the 'bad part of town'? Esme had no experience with children getting into drugs or alcohol. She wouldn't know what to do if he was. And how would she even make herself known to stop his bad behavior? What would she say to him when he asked how he found him? 'I was just stalking you by following you scent to see what you were up to?' That would not go over so well.

She kept following him. They slowly started to leave the residential areas and now were walking in more of a small, but sophisticated shopping area. Not a strip mall, but a row of shops and cafes that lined the streets. Most were still closed, some coffee shops were opening to welcome early rising guests. It was about 6:45 am when Andy's scent lead her to the door of one of the buildings. Esme looked up at the sign of the top of the small, white store. She expected to see a sign for a skateboard shop or punk rock store. She was completely shocked when she read the feminine, blue print. Completely shocked, she went inside and saw something she thought she would never see. Even if she lived forever.

She walked inside the tasteful front room. There was a large window to her right that covered most of the wall. There was a small strip of baby blue wall circling the window. And through the window was a dance studio. And in said dance studio was Andy. Performing a salsa dance. With a partner. In a dance class.

Esme stood in front of the window completely shocked. Andy did not seem to the kind of boy that would do ballroom dance. His distance seemed to make a little more sense now. He probably didn't want anyone to know. That was understandable. Esme just kept standing there in amazement. Andy was really good. He was a very fluid dancer, his hips moved in an expert way to the upbeat music that played. He looked like he had been dancing for years.

The music was nearing an end, and on the final beat, Andy expertly dipped is partner and looked up at the window. His eyes bulged open when he saw Esme standing there watching him. Needless to say, he was shocked. He blushed bright red, dropped his partner and walked into the dressing room.

Esme felt horrible, not just for causing his partner physical harm, but for blowing his secret, This was obviously something he did not want anyone else to know. She debated leaving right then and there, she would pretend that she had never seen him. She was leaving fairly soon, it wouldn't be hard. No one else would ever know. But just as she turned to the door she heard him speak.

"How did you find me here?"

She turned around, an apologetic look on her face. She was trying to convey the message that she really wished she never found out.

"I was window shopping down here and I saw you come in here. I decided to see what you were doing. Now I wish I hadn't come in here."

He nodded silent. But almost in acceptance. He didn't say anything else, but Esme felt like she shouldn't leave now.

"You're a wonderful dancer, Andy. How long have you been coming here?"

"I started coming when I was fourteen. It started as a way to meet hot girls, but then I found that I was good, and I actually enjoyed it."

Esme smiled one of her motherly smiles.

"That's nice. How often do you come here?"

"Three times a week. I sneak out early those days. No one ever notices. They all think I just sleep in really late. I come in through my window so no one ever catches me."

"You're pretty cunning. If I wasn't in the right place at the right time I never would have caught you."

He gave a halfhearted smile. Andy was sort of relieved to talk to someone who was accepting of what he wanted to do. Esme didn't seem to care that he was dancing, she just smiled a kind way at him and gave out compliments. It was nice not having to keep the secret for just once. Esme really was a great person to have come to their home. She didn't judge anyone, and she was always very supportive.

They didn't talk for much longer. Esme told Andy to 'get back in there and show those girls how it's done' and promised to stay and wait for him until he was done. He agreed and walked back into the studio, apologized to the girl he dropped (who was holding some ice to her head) and continued on dancing.

When Andy came out of the studio dressed in his usual attire of a hoodie and 'low rider' jeans he walked straight to Esme and gave her an awkward, but kind hug.

"Thanks for accepting me."

"Don't think anything of it, dear." Esme replied smiling.

Andy really was a very sweet boy, which she especially found out when she took him out for breakfast at a cafe next door. He really opened up to her during that time. She found out so many things about him that he had never told anyone else.

They walked home together and parted ways at the lawn. Esme went to the front door, while Andy circled around to his window. Esme smiled before opening the door and announcing her arrival.

"I thought you were getting groceries." Jim said in a perplexed tone.

"Oh, sorry I got sidetracked and then forgot about them. Would you like me to go out now?"

"Oh, no. Don't worry about it, we can get some later. What were you up to that sidetracked you so much?" Jim asked.

Esme looked at Andy, who had just 'woken up', and answered.

"Just a little bit of window shopping."

He gave her a small smile and she nodded back at him. It was a smile of comradeship. She liked that she had a special bond with Andy.

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**A/N: Alright, now who was expecting that Andy was such a sweetie? I sure didn't. He did that all on his own, I swear. **

**I really hope you liked this chapter, it was a little bit more sentimental than the other ones. Drop me a line, I love hearing from you guys! **

**Until next time,**

**-- tanis ann **


	10. Chapter 10: Day Five: Part One

**A/N: Hello, everyone! Again, I'm sorry for the late updates, but I've had a really stressful last few weeks. I was doing Drivers Ed., skating and a dance show. I had pretty much no time.**

**Now, this story is nearing the end! This is day five, and there are only seven, which means about 5 or 6 more chapters (I'll probably combine the last day into one). And I'm hoping to finish this before the summer because I'm going to ITALY!!!! and hoping to get a job as well. So if it's not done by July, I wouldn't expect another update until probably the end of August. **

**Here is chapter ten! I hope you enjoy the fun little event that happens in this one!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything. But Linda. She's mine.**

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**Day Five: The Cullen's Home**

Linda Walling was sitting in the expensive kitchen of the Cullen's enormous house. It was about 5:30 in the morning and she was completely exhausted from the fiasco that took place only hours ago. She could feel her eyelids heavily drooping but she couldn't sleep. The anxiety of the coming day was too much to allow for any kind of rest. Linda had been awake for almost an hour, unable to sleep at the new she received just before going to bed last night. No one else had been told of the news. She would have to be the one to tell everyone else what the _Trading Spouses_ people had told her; she was hosting a dinner party.

Linda had never enjoyed these types of get-togethers. She was a homebody. Her favourite place to be was at home sipping a warm cup of tea and reading a book or watching _House_, her favourite T.V. show. Stating it simply, she hated crowds and she hated cooking. She never cooked anything from scratch. Ever. Although she was sure they had noticed, probably being used to gourmet meals everyday, every meal Linda had made for the Cullen family had come out of the microwave. Pasta, meatloaf, even breakfasts came out of the freezer and were heated in the microwave. But now she was cooking for other people. Surely, if they were the Cullen's friends, they were also very classy people. And it would be extremely embarrassing to herself and the Cullen's if she made a microwave dinner for the party.

Linda sat in the chair and rubbed her temples, trying to push out all of her anxiety and fear and hatred of hosting parties. She didn't hear the silent footsteps of the vampire entering the room.

"Are you okay, Linda?" Carlisle asked in a kind and concerned voice. "You look a little tense."

"Oh, I'm fine." Linda replied, a little startled. It unnerved her how the entire family could move around the house in complete silence. She didn't know how it was possible for anyone to move around like that, let alone a whole family. She was completely ready to go home. This house was too perfect, the family to rehearsed, and that kind of environment make her a bit distressed and uneasy.

Carlisle shrugged and let the subject drop. He was rather sure she would tell him what was making her uneasy or Edward would. He tried his best to look like someone his age would. It was still early, about 6:00 am, but he knew Linda was awake and he figured the 'character' he was playing would be up this early. He started a pot of coffee he would pretend to drink and grabbed the morning paper.

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The children started emerging about three hours later. First was Alice, followed by Jasper and Bella. Then Edward. Rosalie and Emmett came downstairs a while later. Linda had never made any sort of food for the kids, she was much too consumed with her own thoughts of the upcoming horror. She decided it was better to get the news over with soon and called the family into the dining room with the expensive antique table.

"Good morning, everyone," she greeted, "I was given some news late last night that I found a little bit shocking." Linda knew she was over exaggerating the story just a little bit, but she couldn't help it.

"Shocking?" Asked Carlisle.

"Well, the T.V. show people want us to host a dinner party for a couple of your friends. You know, for me to get to know more of the people you know. Do you guys have anyone in mind we can invite?"

The seven Cullen's looked awkwardly at each other. The thought of inviting anyone from town was probably a bad idea. It would be little bit strange because no one was that close with anyone else and it might start people talking again. None of them knew what the best course of action was. There were so many different possibilities, so many things that could go wrong if the wrong thing was said. They all sat awkwardly in the dining room until Emmett broke the silence.

"We could invite Tanya's family."

There were seven pairs of eyes trained on him. One, Linda's, looked relieved. She really wasn't sure that they actually had any friends and was extremely relieved that they did. The other six looked incredulous. It would be just lovely to bring another five vampiresinto the house that already had one uncomfortable human. Of course, Tanya's family were 'vegetarians' as well, but it would not help Linda's state of mind to have five more 'strange people' in the house.

"That sounds lovely," Linda replied, "Do they live here in town?"

"Um, no ,actually. They live in Denali, Alaska. But it wouldn't be difficult for them to come down here."

Linda nodded. She wouldn't want this family, that was apparently the Cullens' only close friends, to have drive or fly all the way down to Forks just for one dinner with the stay-in mother. It seem rather extreme, and not to mention expensive, for them to come all those miles. It was just one dinner.

"Are you sure that's necessary? It is a long way to come for just one small dinner. Are you sure you don't have any other friends in town? I'm positive it would cost this family a fair amount of money to travel all the way down here."

None of the six vampires knew what to say next. Of course there was a small liability issue with bringing five more vampires into the house. But it would be rather strange if all of a sudden the mysterious family of eight invited a group of people to dinner whom they regularly ignored. It would make Linda much more comfortable to have human beings around her, rather than vampires, but it might start some people talking if they were invited into a house full of rumors. There was no better course of action in this situation, everything had its issues. A tense moment passed in the household before Bella spoke.

"We could invite Jake and his friends."

No one could deny that this came with its benefits. The wolves already knew everything about the Cullen family, there would be no fear of blowing the secret if they were invited. In addition, for the first time since Linda had come to Forks her food would be enjoyed. But this plan also came with a downside. Even though the main issues had been worked out between the wolves and the Cullens, there were still some hard feelings. Jacob was still slightly angry will Bella for deciding to change and especially angry with Edward for performing the change. Most of the other wolves were more or less neutral on the subject. None had cared for Bella the way Jacob did and therefore were unable to completely sympathize with him. They couldn't completely see why he was so struck by Bella's decision to change. They thought he was being melodramatic.

"Do they live close?" Asked Linda. She was much too concerned with saving Tanya's family all the money it would cost to come down here than to notice the increased tension in the house.

Of course the vampires did not hold anything against the wolves. They were well within their right to greatly hate the Cullens. The Cullens were just glad they didn't have to immediately flee the state. They would completely understand if the wolves denied their invitation, and extremely surprised if they accepted. It wouldn't look too good if they called their 'friends', who, in turn, denied the invitation, but if such should happen, they always had Tanya's family as a back up.

"Yes, they live in La Push, the small Indian reservation not far from here." Carlisle replied. "Maybe you should call Jacob, Bella."

Bella nodded and left the dining room while pulling out her small silver phone. She quickly dialed the number once she entered the living room. It rang three times before a deep voice answered the phone.

"Hello?"

"Jake?" Bella replied.

"Bella?" Jacob sounded genuinely surprised for a moment before turning ill-tempered. "What do you want?"

"Well, I know I'm in no place to ask this of you, and I completely understand if you throw this back in my face, but would you and the rest of the pack like to come for dinner? Alice signed us up for Trading Spouses, and we need to have a dinner party for our friends, but we don't really have any friends in town . . ." She trailed off.

There was silence on the other end of the line. Although Jacob hated what she had become, he couldn't actually bring himself to hate her. He really didn't want to deny her anything, but there was no way he could promise that the pack would attend.

"I really don't know, Bella. I can't speak for the pack. I'll see if I can round anyone up, but I'm not making any promises."

"Thank you so much, Jacob!"

"Yeah, I'll call you back soon."

Bella waited anxiously in the living room. She was worried for what she would hear from Jacob. The odds were stacked against him. The wolves were not the Cullens' biggest fans. She was lucky to even get Jacob to agree to ask the rest of the pack.

It was about ten or fifteen minutes later that jacob called back. Surprisingly, with good news.

"Seth, Quil, Embry, Sam, Jared and Leah will come."

"Why Leah?"

"Seth. She doesn't want him coming without her. Anyways, when do you need us?"

"About six o'clock? And thanks again, Jacob."

"Yeah, no problem."

Bella hung up the phone and returned to the dining room.

"Seven of them are coming. I told them six o'clock. Is that okay?"

"Yes, that's fine. I'm glad we found someone to come! I'll get started soon."

"Do you need any help?" Edward asked.

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At precisely six o'clock p.m., there were three quick raps on the door. Linda quickly washed her hands of any grease, and made her way over to the door. She jumped slightly when she saw Jacob's looming figure standing several feet taller than her. Behind Jacob were six more people. Each of them, except Seth, looked rather wary. Their eyes shifted anxiously around the room, only focusing for fractions of a second on each object.

"Hello! I'm Linda, the new mom." Linda stuck out her hand as a welcoming gesture.

"Jacob." He said taking her hand in his oversized one. "And these are Quil, Embry, Leah, Seth, Jared and Sam."

"Oh, it's nice to meet you. Wow, you're hand is really warm. Were you holding your palms on your radiator or something?"

Linda knew she was rambling. But that's what she does when she gets nervous. It was always something she hated about herself. She had tried to stop. She even took classes at the local community back in Atlanta to help with her 'problem', but it didn't help. She still rambled and she still hated that she did.

"Alrighty, well why don't you guys take a seat in the living room and make yourselves at home. Me and Edward are almost done with dinner."

Jacob nodded and led the procession into the living room where Carlisle, Emmett and Jasper were already seated. Leah, Jared and Sam refused to move to far from the door and Quil and Embry would not sit. The just near the entrance to the living room looking slightly constipated. Jacob and Seth took a seat on the immaculately white leather sofa. Nobody spoke. An extremely awkward moment passed in the living room before Carlisle finally spoke.

"Thank you so much for doing this," he said, the tone of thanks very prominent in his voice. "We really appreciate you coming over here. Anytime you need something from any of us, just let us know."

"We'll keep that in mind." Jacob said, indifferent.

Another awkward and tense moment passed in the house before Jacob spoke again.

"Why did you even need us to come? Couldn't you have asked some of your parasite friends?" The critical tone of his voice was very apparent.

"Well, Jacob, they live in Alaska, and Linda thought it would be too extreme to get them to come down here. Just know that you're doing us a very big favour by coming here tonight."

They continued to sit in silence until Linda came rushing into the living room looking very excited, very proud and very oblivious to the tension.

'It's ready everyone!"

Linda was not someone to get overly excited. Being a mother of two had left her permanently exhausted her. She only got excited for events that were very deserving. And this one was. She and Edward had been working on this dinner for hours and he was extremely talented. She had learned more about cooking in the last few hours than she had in all of her high school Home Ec. classes combined. They had prepared some truly extravagant dishes together and had bonded quite a bit in the experience. She was very pleased to say that she had gotten to know him quite a bit. She learned that he loved music and played the piano. He enjoyed running quite bit and liked playing baseball with hi family. Overall it was a truly wonderful experience.

The seven guests warily left the living room and proceeded to the large dining room. They stopped short when the saw the extravagant meal before them.

There were four kinds of vegetables at the table. All prepared in the most delicious looking style. There were the creamiest looking mashed potatoes in a large blue bowl, steamed carrots, cauliflower and broccoli placed beside a large bowl of cheese sauce. A wonderful, steaming fresh baked loaf of bread was placed at the end of the table. Beside it was a plate of small pastries filled with cheese, egg and ham. And in the very middle of the enormous table were five Peking Ducks and a juicy steak, surrounded with lemons, limes, pineapples and some other garnishes. It all looked extremely delicious and the guests could not last long before they quickly seated themselves and proceeded to dig in. The Cullens and Linda, who was obviously pleased with the reaction, sat down much more slowly and all took portions as well.

"So, Jacob, how old are you?" Linda sled in an attempt to get to know him better.

"Seventeen." He replied while shoving a forkful of vegetable and potatoes in his mouth.

"Oh, wow, only seventeen? I thought you were at least 20."

Jacob nodded and continued to fill his mouth.

"How did you guys meet the Cullens?"

A brief, awkward wave hit the table. Nobody knew what to say to that question. There wasn't a really answer anyone could give. For the first time everyone stopped eating and froze for a second before Carlisle spoke, calm and collected.

"I've known Jacob's family for years." He said pulling some truth. He had, indeed, met Jacob's great grandfather. "We met shortly after we moved here and then we were introduced to his close friends."

The meal continued much the same. The guests did little talking. Only speaking when spoken to, and the Cullens tried to avoid conversation to help make them feel more comfortable. Linda continued to ask questions in an attempt to learn more about the Cullen family and their friends, but her questions were mostly received with lies. Neither family wanted to give away any crucial secrets.

After the five Peking Ducks and the steak were gone, Linda brought out four pies in four different flavours: apple, pecan fudge, pumpkin and blueberry. And allowed the guests to further stuff themselves.

When both dinner and desert were finished the group moved to the living room for short, tense, guarded conversation. It was not long before Sam concluded that they should better be going.

"We should probably head out now. I know we all have somewhere to be early tomorrow and I don't want us to be too restless." He said with a pointed glance at all the wolves.

"Oh, yes, of course. I'm so sorry I kept you all so long. I had a lovely time. I hope you all did, too."

"We had a wonderful time. Thank you very much for the superb dinner."

Linda saw all of them off and after curt 'goodbye' from each of the Cullens the wolves departed from the house and headed home.

"Well, that was just wonderful you guys! Thank you so much for your help in the kitchen, Edward! Those boys and girl are so lovely. I'm very glad we had them over."

Silence passed through the house. It was not awkward, nor was in tense, It was a restful, relieving silence. They had made it through another night without letting out any deadly secrets. There were only two more nights they would have to keep up the charade.

"Alright, I'm going to bed. I hope you all have a wonderful night. I had a great time. I will see you all in the morning."

Linda walked up the impressive staircase with a slight smile on her lips. She had made it through another night in this foreign house. She was almost home, but she couldn't keep from wondering if she would miss this quirky family.

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**A/N: Well, I sure hope you enjoyed that. I sure enjoyed writing it. Again, I'm really sorry for the slow updates, but I have to be in a real writing mood. **

**But school is done for me now so hopefully I'll be able to update more often.**

**Drop me a line and tell me what you thought. Your reviews warm the cockles of my heart!**

**Until next time,**

**tanis ann**


	11. Chapter 11: Day Five: Part Two

**A/N: Bonjourno everybody! I think we are on better time than last update, which is good. Anyways, get this . . . I just got back from Volterra. It was pretty cool. But, sadly, there is no fountain in the middle of the piazza . . . And the clock tower is right beside the entrance to the city, not across the piazza. But, either way, it was still really neat. **

**Anyways, here is the next chapter, which I think, is a another fun one.**

**Disclaimer: Nothing is mine, except for all of the original characters that are going to be introduced.**

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**Day Five: The Walling's Home**

Esme had just learned that she was to host a dinner party at the Walling's home to get to know their friends and the family better. She had no problem with this. Esme loved entertaining and it was something she very rarely got to undertake. The family did not have any friends back home in Forks, and Tanya's family only rarely came for visits. She was very excited, not only to meet some new people, but to put on a good show, as well. Most of the family was still asleep, but Esme was already planning elaborate dishes and fancy decorations.

When the family, well, Sandra and Andy, finally emerged from their rooms Esme made the exciting announcement.

"Well, everyone, tonight we are supposed to hold a dinner party. I will handle all the cooking and decorating, you guys just need to invite lots of your friends and maybe spruce up the house a little bit, okay?"

"Umm, okay, that sounds . . . reasonable. Right, kids? Let's get on the phones before everyone is busy."

Andy and Sandra grunted in response before slithering off the sofa to go call some of their friends.

Esme, who was still smiling widely, pranced off to borrow the van to pick up some decorations for her party extravaganza. She ended up spending $676.28 on various decorations and food items. Alice would be proud . . . Bella wound have a heart attack (if that were possible). She knew that Carlisle would be disappointedly shaking his head when he got the credit card bill, but this was necessary. She really wanted to put on a good party for her new family.

In the end, there were two families coming to Esme's party. They were all very close friends of the family. Esme was extremely excited about meeting them. She had been preparing for hours and, finally, everything was finished. She had cooked six steaks, prepared three different ways, five chicken breasts that were each marinated in a different way and served with different garnishes and sides, two different salads, one with many different kinds of fruits and the other with vegetables. One large bowl of pasta, and three different sauces, a tomato sauce, a cream sauce and a pesto sauce, so each person could prepare their own the way they wished. She had cooked from scratch four loaves of bread, two were garlic and the others were baguettes. She had bought seven bottles of wine, the most recommended by the clerk working at the liquor store. And, finally, she had cooked two different pies, an apple cinnamon, a pecan fudge and a classic cheesecake, for dessert.

The small backyard was decorated with thousands of small twinkling lights. They lined the old, wooden fences and hung around the door and the back side of the house. She had bought a few tiki lamps that were placed around the backyard. The glow of the lights and the lamps was very relaxing and comforting. She had bought a new white, lacy table cloth and was currently placing plates, silverware and wine glasses around the table. She was just placing the last napkin in its spot when she heard the old doorbell ring.

She rushed inside to see three people entering the house, giving friendly greetings to the Walling family. She rushed over to introduce herself.

"Hello, I'm Esme." She said with a pleasant smile gracing her features. The first to approach her was a very short, thin man. He was probably no taller that five feet, six inches and had thinning brown hair on the top of his head in which he tried to cover up with a small combover. He had large, grandpa-style glasses and was wearing a red, fleece sweatshirt.

"Why, hello there, miss, The name's Roger Foderer, not to be confused with Roger Federer, I'm much more of a badminton man, myself." He reached out to shake Esme's hand.

"Oh, I've never really tried either . . ." Esme replied. Roger was about to say something in return, but Jim excitedly interrupted, telling Roger about a new model he had just received in the mail. The woman approached Esme next.

"Oh, don't you worry about them! They're coo coo for planes!" She snorted and laughed at her own joke. She was also rather short, no taller than five feet, four inches. She was a little bit on plump side, but in no means overweight. She had short, obviously died, black hair. It was cut into a very boyish, but not very fashionable style. She wore a black, sequined, sleeveless top and a pair of black slacks. "My name's Beatrice, Bea for short. It's very nice to meet you!"

"Oh, the pleasure is all mine." Esme replied, smiling. The last to introduce herself was a young girl. She looked to be about seventeen years old and had a full head of thick, dark, loose curls cascading down her shoulders. She was very pretty, with soft, but striking features. She, like her parents, was on the short side. She was about five feet, three inches and wore a yellow, babydoll top with intricate, brown designs lining the neckline, a dark pair of straight leg jeans and a tasteful amount of jewelry. She walked up to Esme to introduce herself.

"Hello, Esme, I'm Camellia, you can call me Cam, most people do."

"It's very nice to meet you, Cam." Esme said in return. Cam sounded like a very nice young lady.

It was not long before the second family arrived. Again, the husband was the first to introduce himself. He was of medium height, not as tall as Jim, but taller than Roger, and was very muscular. He somewhat resembled Emmett.

"Hello, I'm Richard." He said in an extremely deep and menacing voice.

"Hi, Richard, I'm Esme." The next to introduce herself was Richard's wife. She was very tall and very thin. The had a straight, blonde bob and rather beady eyes. She was dressed in a black top that was slightly too short and showed her stomach and a pair of old jeans.

"Hello, I am Lisa." Her introduction was curt. She quickly shook Esme's hand before moving off towards the backyard with her husband.

The next to approach Esme was a young girl, about fifteen or sixteen years of age. She had shoulder length blonde hair tucked behind her ears. She wore glasses and simple, plain clothing.

"Hi, my name is Ashley. It's very nice to meet you." Her introduction, like her mother's, was rather short. She shook Esme's hand before moving to the party in the backyard.

The last was a young boy who was about eighteen years old. He was very tall, about six feet, four inches, and dressed in very expensive clothing. He was very thin and everything he was wearing had the name of a designer somewhere on the piece of clothing. His hair was gelled into short, orderly spikes and the tips were died in striking contrast to his dark hair. He reached out his hand.

"Hello, it is very nice to meet you, my name is Byron."

"It is very nice to meet you, as well, Byron."

Byron nodded once before striding off to the backyard. Esme was very happy. They all seemed like very friendly people. She was very excited to get to know them all better. Esme quickly went to join everyone in the bedazzled backyard.

No one had seated themselves at the table yet, everyone had formed small groups and were chatting with each other on the small, stone patio. Sandy, Cam and Ashley were chatting excitedly about boys, Byron and Andy were awkwardly standing next to each other, quietly muttering things as to not seem too rude, and the parents were in a group catching up with each other, it had been a while since any of them had seen each other. Esme was standing in the doorway smiling. She enjoyed watching people have a good time. She was looking at each of the group when she noticed Andy staring at . . . Cam? Andy nor Byron were speaking, it was easy to tell that they were not good friends, they did not know each other well and did not have much to say. Byron excused himself to use the washroom and Esme made a move towards Andy.

"Who are you looking at, Andy?"

Andy jumped. He had not heard Esme approach and it startled him to hear her voice next to him.

"No one." He said quickly, trying to cover up the fact that he was indeed staring, but only making the fact more obvious.

"She's very pretty, isn't she? You should go talk to her. I'll bet she'll like it."

Andy didn't say anything. He was too embarrassed at being caught staring at the object of his affections. He just looked down at his feet, trying not to turn too red. Esme nudged his shoulder in the direction of the girls. She was about to get everyone to sit down and knew that if Andy started moving in that direction he would end up beside Cam.

"Well," She said in a louder voice while hip checking Andy closer to the circle of females, "shall we start dinner?"

There was a positive mumble in the crowd and everyone started to move in the direction of the table. Esme gave Andy one more shove before disappearing into the house to grab as many plates as she thought was humanly possible. When she came back out she was pleased to see Andy sitting next to Cam. She proceeded to place the many plates and bowls of food on the plastic, backyard table. She sat directly across from Andy.

"So, Esme," Esme knew who was speaking immediately because of the deep voice that asked the question. "Where are you from?"

"I'm from a small town call Forks in northern Washington."

"Doesn't it rain a lot there?" Richard asked. After receiving a nod, he continued with his next question. "What do you do for a living?"

"I stay at home, I have six adopted teenagers, so someone has to do the work around the house, but I do take part in a few small interior design or architectural projects every once and a while. What do you do?"

"I'm a personal trainer. But _-" _He was about to say something else, but was interrupted by his wife.

"_Six _teenagers! I only have two and I want to strangle them on a regular basis!" Ashley and Byron looked very offended as she continued with her rant. " How is it possible that you still have a full head of hair!?"

"Oh . . ." Esme was shocked by Lisa's outburst. "They're very well behaved kids. We all get along rather well."

Lisa snorted and looked extremely skeptical. She was positive Esme was lying, 'behaved teenagers' was an oxymoron. There was no such thing. She was sure that Esme must be one of those mothers who just spends all day at an expensive spa that 99% of America could not afford.

Esme turned to Roger and Bea.

"What do you two do for a living?" She asked.

"Well," Roger started proudly, "I'm a professional badminton player, but on the side I own a custom coffee mug shop. Actually," he said, reaching behind him, "I brought this for you." He handed Esme a plain white, medium sized mug that had 'World's Best Replacement Mom' printed on the side.

"Oh, my goodness, this is so nice of you!" Esme thanked them, she was genuinely sad she would never be able to use the beautiful mug.

"It was nothing!" Bea replied, "we thought we should bring something for this woman who was hosting such an extravagant party. This really is a wonderful meal, where did you lean to cook like this?"

"From my son, Edward, actually. He enjoys cooking, so I asked him to teach me a few of his tricks."

"A son that likes to cook. I sure wish I had one of those." Lisa said looking pointedly at Byron, who's face when blank at the mention of himself and cooking.

Esme decided to say not much further, just a few questions to Byron, Ashley and Cam. Soon the table fell into effortless conversation between friends. Esme looked up after taking a pretend bite of chicken and noticed that neither Cam nor Andy were speaking to anyone. She caught Andy's eye and silently persuaded him to start a conversation with Cam. He continually shook his head until Esme's pleading became too much to resist. A defeated look came upon his face and he turned towards Cam, asking her a question about school. She turned towards him and happily answered his question. Esme smiled, knowing she had done a good thing.

The party continued in the same effortless fashion. People flowed easily from conversation to conversation. It was friendly chatter and Esme was happy that Andy was still talking with Cam, and she seemed to be enjoying herself as much as he was. It was obvious that he was beginning to let his guard down. He was abandoning the sulky teenager attitude and becoming a much more fun and open person. Cam would even laugh every once and a while at one of his jokes.

The party continued until about one thirty in the morning when Lisa announced that she had a big presentation the next morning and needed her sleep. She curtly thanked Esme for the party, and then said she would be waiting in the car and her family 'better not take too long to show up'.

"Thanks for the great party, Esme. You sure know how to throw 'em. It was very nice to meet you. If your body ever needs sculpting, you give me a call." He said as he shook her hand and very slyly handed her a business card. Esme gave a quiet laugh because she knew she could never be 'sculpted' more than she already was. After some more quieter and politer goodbyes from Byron and Ashley, the family departed from the small suburban house.

It was not long before the Foderer family announced that they better be going as well.

"Well, Esme, that was just wonderful. If I'm ever playing a match of badminton near Forks I would sure love it if you could come watch."

"I would love that, Roger." Esme replied, "and thank you so much for the mug. It's lovely."

"It sure was nice to meet you, hun" Bea said as she gave Esme a quick hug goodbye.

"Thank you very much for dinner, Esme, it was lovely," Cam said before turning to Andy. "Goodbye, Andy." She gave him a small wave before following her parents out the door. Andy shyly raised his hand too late in response. Sandra looked slightly shocked in his direction. Esme just smiled.

"Esme, that was just wonderful. Thank you for doing so much for this family." Jim said to her.

"It's nothing, really." Esme replied. She was extremely happy that she was able to do such wonderful things for this family. She really had grown quite attached to them. It was nice to know she was making the impact she wanted.

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**A/N: Well, that chapter was rather enjoyable. It was fun. Just so you know, I go into writing these chapters with absolutely no plan. I just pull them right out of no where, so maybe that is why my updates are so few and far between, I'm sorry about that.**

**You know I adore hearing from you. So don't hesitate to click that wee button at the bottom of your screen.**

**Until next time, **

**tanis ann**

**Just a little tidbit for you, the scientific name for your collar bone is the clavicle.**


	12. Chapter 12: The Final Day

**A/N: Okay, so I know I told you all that there would be about three more chapters, but I don't really have enough ideas left inside of my brain to write two more chapters (and I don't want to just write two more chapters and have them be filled with nothingness, that's not cool). Plus, I know I'm a bad updater. I don't have a lot of time to sit down and write (I'm in grade 12 this year and it's quite a bit more work than my last two years of high school!), and I don't want you guys to have to wait another couple of months for this story to be finished. So, I choose to finish now. I apologize to those who are disappointed with me, I hope we can still be friends.**

**Disclaimer: Twilight is not mine. Trading Spouses is also not mine.**

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**The Final Day:**

**The Cullen's Home**

Linda awoke early the next morning. The dull light of a cloudy day was streaming through her window. It was gloomy, yet she knew there was some sun on her horizon. She was going home today. It was her final day in the small and gloomy and sunless and strange town she had called home for the last week. She knew she was making it sound bad in her own mind, it was obvious. This town wasn't really bad at all, it was nice, the people were nice, her family was nice, but something about them made her extremely uneasy. Maybe it was the clouds, she had never lived in such a place where the sun shone so seldom, it was bound to make her unsettled, right? Whatever the reason, it no longer mattered, Linda Walling was going home.

She arose from her bed with a smile on her face. She was excited to see her husband and her kids again. They weren't the perfect family, in no way as perfect as the one she was staying with, but she loved them. She missed the bickering and the fighting and the dinners in which no one waited for anyone else to finish. She was excited, but she knew she would miss this strange family she had come to love.

She quickly dressed, knowing she only had a few hours left with this exotic family, and made her way downstairs. Surprisingly, they were all sitting at the large antique dining table. Alice was standing beside the table, hiding most of it from view. She had the largest smile Linda had ever seen plastered on her face and was slightly vibrating. Edward looked slightly pained and Carlisle looked apologetic. Linda really didn't know what was going to happen next, after seeing the look on Alice's face, Linda knew that anything could happen.

"What's going on, Alice?" She asked suspiciously.

Alice looked as though she was about to burst before she squealed.

"It's your going away party!"

Alice stepped aside so Linda could see the elaborately decorated dining room. There were colourful streamers lining the walls and the edge of the table and small flowers were bunched at the corners. On the table was an elaborate breakfast fit for a five star hotel. And placed in the middle was a small, neat, blue wrapped package.

"Oh . . . wow. You guys really didn't need to do any of this for me . . ." She surprisingly said. Although she knew it was way too much to do for the step in mother of one week, she was happy they appreciated her enough to do a gesture like this.

"Oh, no, no, no, Linda! It was _deserved. _You did so much for us, we needed a way to repay you!" Alice replied, looking at Linda like she was crazy for saying such a thing. "Now sit right down and dig into he wonderful breakfast chef Edward made for you!"

Smiling, Linda sat down in front of the breakfast and feasted away. One large breakfast and a full belly later, Linda pushed back her chair and horrifically looked at the size of the meal she consumed.

"Well, that was incredible, Edward. You should seriously think about becoming a chef!"

Edward just smiled and nodded in response.

"Okay, okay, now open your gift!" Alice excitedly pushed the small box towards Linda.

Linda felt a little uncomfortable accepting a gift, she hadn't really deserved it, but, when she tried to protest Alice just waved her concerns off, saying something about how it really wasn't anything.

Linda took a deep breath before opening it. She knew it was going to be something expensive and extravagant, it was how this family operated. It was going to be something involving precious stones or gold or silver. It was going to be something Linda could never have dreamed of owning. She tugged on the small silver ribbon surrounding the blue wrapping.

She lifted the lid to reveal a tasteful, beaded necklace. It didn't look overly expensive or flashy, it wasn't silver or gold or some other expensive metal. There were no jewels, gems or precious stones. It was simple, and it defiantly was not Alice's style.

"I knew you wouldn't want something from a jewelry store, or anything. I picked it up at one of the weekend street markets in Seattle. I thought you would like that better."

Alice was defiantly right. Linda did like it better, it was something she could see herself wearing instead of sadly packing away.

"You were right, Alice. Thank you very much for this."

"Oh, it was nothing, really." Alice replied. "Just make sure you wear it every single day." She added in a very serious tone.

Linda awkwardly smiled before giving Alice a small 'thank you' hug. After giving everyone else a quiet thank you, she excused herself to her room to pack and do the one thing she was most nervous about; deciding how the $50, 000 was going to be spent.

It seemed somewhat superfluous to give a family with so much even more, but if she was being truthful with herself, she knew they deserved the money. They were a very wonderful family and having six teenagers no doubt cost them quite a bit of money. She just wasn't sure she knew the best way to allocate the funds, and she really did not want to disappoint the people who had been so hospitable to her. She sat down and thought long and hard before she finally came up with the combination she though was best. She could only hope that the Cullen family felt the same way.

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**Final Day: **

**The Walling's Home**

It was the final day. Esme lay in her bed, not sleeping, thinking about how much she would miss this quirky family. She had never had a family that was so painstakingly _normal. _They fought and they bickered and they did things they _knew_ bothered each

other, but it was very obvious that they loved each other. It was something she had never really experienced before, and as horrible and annoying the bickering could get, a strange feeling of _family_ came along with it. Although Emmett loved to pick apart Edward's patience, it was still somehow different. It was an interesting experience.

She had worked on writing her letter and alloted they money during the hours in which she did not sleep. She was confident in her choices, but there was a nagging voice in her mind saying that she could have done better, that there was something she left out.

When it was 7:26 am, Esme could not take the solitude of the small bedroom any longer. It was too quiet and too lonely. She knew that no one else would be awake yet, but the idea of being out in a communal space felt better than staying in private. She rose silently and made her way to the kitchen.

It was around 9:30 am when others started to emerge from their rooms. By that time, Esme had laid out a large breakfast, having decided to leave after having one last 'hurrah!'. Jim noticed the spread and stopped, eyes wide.

"Wow. You really didn't need to do this."

"Oh, don't think anything of it, I wanted to do it for you." Esme replied.

Jim just silently nodded, accepting Esme's words. He slowly moved toward the table and took a seat. He sat there awkwardly until Sandra came into the kitchen 15 minutes later. He had a similar, but slightly toned down reaction to Esme's work before taking a seat herself. She made the first move, taking one of the large cinnamon buns, picking off small pieces with her fingers. Jim's apprehension seemed to have dissolved as soon as Sandra began eating and he soon started, as well. Andy stumbled into the kitchen sometime around 11:30 am. He didn't seem surprised and he didn't make any comments, he just sat down at the table and began eating.

Esme smiled, enjoying the solitude among the family. She knew she would greatly miss them and she very much wished they would miss her, but she could see that they missed their mother. It was time that they made the switch to make everything right, to set everything back to normal. It had been a wonderful week for her, but she missed her family. It had been too long since she had seen Emmett and Jasper playing elaborate games, Bella curled up on the couch reading a book, Edward's intricate compositions or Rosalie and Alice planning new fashion designs and projects. She couldn't be more excited to be going home, and she knew that the other mother was feeling the exact same way.

**-------------------------------------------- 4 HOURS LATER -----------------------------------------------**

It was time to meet the woman who had lived with her family for the last week. Linda Walling couldn't deny the intense feeling of nervousness that was coursing through her. What if this woman was a total psycho? Who knows what could have happened during the last week. Her taxi pulled up to a very extravagant house that was, truthfully speaking, half the size of the Cullen household.

She climbed the few steps to the front door, took a few deep breaths, and walked through the beautifully decorated hallway until she came to a very large and open room. There were two antique armchairs in the centre, one was empty. In the other a very beautiful woman was seated. She had long, carmel hair, and was very slender. She was dressed impeccably well. It seemed only right that such a beautiful family would have a beautiful mother. It settled her nerves to see that, from the outside at least, she was normal. She stood to greet Linda.

"Hello, my name is Esme. It was so wonderful to meet your family."

"Linda, your family was absolutely lovely."

They sat in the large, comfortable armchairs and quickly discussed their experiences over the last week.

"Your family was just amazing," Linda began, "I don't think I've ever seen a family get along so well! They were absolutely wonderful. Alice gave me a makeover, Edward, Jasper and Emmett had a cooking lesson together, although that didn't turn out very well . . . and we did have one little run in with the flu the very first day."

"The flu?" Asked Esme, perplexed. Last time she checked, vampires didn't get sick.

"Oh yes, it was the very first night, I found Emmett throwing up and then Jasper, Edward Bella and Alice. They wouldn't accept any medicine or anything though . . . you should really rethink that medicine policy in your family. I think it would have helped if I could have given them something."

Esme just nodded, smiling. She had no idea what Linda was talking about. Was this woman crazy? Their family had no 'medicine policy', Carlisle was a doctor. What kind of family, in which the father was a surgeon, had a policy against medicine?

"Okay, now tell me about my family, were they good? Did Sandra and Andy fight? What was Jim like to you?" Linda asked eagerly.

"Oh, your family was great. Of course Sandra and Andy fought, that's what siblings do, but they were just so nice and friendly. Jim was very nice, as well, he showed me his very impressive model plane collection. It was a very good week."

"I'm glad you enjoyed yourself," Linda replied, smiling, "This is for you family." She said, handing Esme a white envelope with a golden, wax seal.

Esme thanked her and handed her a letter in return. After one final, warm hug, they parted and went back home.

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**The Cullen Household**

The Cullen family was sitting silently in pristine living room, waiting for Esme to come home. They could all easily hear the large taxi pull off the highway and onto the long front drive. It was only minutes until she would come through the front door. Although many of them didn't show it, they had all missed Esme quite a bit. The silent anticipation grew as the taxi neared the large white house.

It was only seconds later that Esme pushed her way through the door, holding too many suitcases. She was immediately bombarded by Alice, the other six vampires stood back, smiling and waiting for their turn to greet Esme. Once they had all said their 'hellos' they sat in the comfortable living room. Esme opened the white envelope and read its contents aloud.

"Dear Cullen Family, I had such a wonderful time this past week. I am so glad that I was able to come to that small and rainy town and spend a week in your lives. I have decided to spent the money as followed:

$500.00 for Emmett, Edward and Jasper to take cooking lessons at a real institute,

$500.00 for Alice, Bella and Rosalie to take a skill course of their choice,

$2000.00 to each of the kids to spend whichever way they wish,

$13, 000.00 for the family to take a vacation wherever they please,

$3500.00 to each of the kids for post secondary studies,

$3000.00 to Esme to spend on whatever she wishes.

I wish you all a very wonderful and happy life. I hope that one day our paths may cross again. Love, Linda Walling."

Esme looked up and smiled. She was happy to be home to her family, and she could tell that they were happy to see her, as well. Other than Emmett, who was slightly heart broken that he had to take a real cooking class, none of them really cared how the money was to be spent. Esme set the letter to the side and just enjoyed being home with her family.

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**The Walling Household**

Jim was working on his planes, Sandra was reading a novel and Andy was sprawled on the couch watching T.V.. From the outside, it seemed the same as any old afternoon, each family member was minding their own business, doing their own thing. But from the inside it was obvious there was an above average amount of tension. Although no one was trying to show it, they were all very excited for their mother to come back home.

It was approximately 30 minutes later when they heard footsteps coming up the ragged stairs. Seconds later, the old door open to reveal a rather flustered Linda Walling. Her cheeks were flushed, her hair a mess of strands sticking out each and every way and she was carrying more suitcases than she could handle. She dropped them all at once and let our a big sigh. She was so happy to finally be home.

Sandra quickly rushed over to help her mother with her suitcases as Jim appeared from his model room and Andy shut off the T.V.. Soon everyone was happily greeting Linda, they had missed her more than they cared to show. After Linda had settled and her bags had been put away, she pulled out the letter Esme had given her, reading it to the family.

"Dear Walling family, It was so great to be able to spend the past week with your family, I enjoyed myself so much and I hope that you enjoyed yourselves, as well. I put a lot of thought into choosing how to spend the money and I hope that you agree with my choices:

$8000.00 to Sandra for university,

$8000.00 to Andy for university,

$20, 000.00 for the family to buy a second car,

$5500.00 for the family to take a vacation,

$500.00 for Jim to spend on model planes,

$8000.00 to pay any bills or debts.

I would like to thank you all for being so kind and hospitable to me for the past week, I wish you all the very best and I sincerely hope that we may one day meet again. Lots of love, Esme."

"Well," Jim said, "I am quite happy with that. She knew exactly what we all needed."

Sandra and Andy nodded in response. Although they both wished they could have gotten a little personal spending money, they were happy with what they got, and happy to have their mother back. It had been too long since they had seen her and it had felt weird to not have her puttering around the house like she always was. Esme was nice and all, but she wasn't their mother.

"I like the improvements to the house." Linda added looking around at all the new furniture and newly painted walls, "it's good to be home." She quietly added and sighed in contentment.

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**A/N: Well, there you have it. The end of my story. It's been a nice run, everyone, and I'd like to thank everyone that read and enjoyed and reviewed my story, it really meant a lot to me to see the little alerts in my inbox. I don't know if I'll right any more stories, inspiration has to hit me like a train for me to be able to write, so only time will tell. I would like to thank you all one more time for the fabulous support.**

**Until next time,**

**tanis ann**


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